The Black Heart
by mochipenguin
Summary: She was in search of something, of someone that 'had her heart'. She didn't ask for it, but she ended up searching for something else with strangers along the way. And again, she didn't ask for it, but she ended up needing the white wizard, because he has everything she needs; a sense of both kindness and evilness. (Fai/OC)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tsubasa Chronicles. That is all.

* * *

**Chapter 1.**

The dark sky growled, followed by a flash of thunder. The rain started to fall, wetting her white attire which was stained by blood, as the rain dripped upon her cheeks. She sighed, finally finishing off her task. Looking around, she saw the dead bodies of her comrades. The villagers she saved were now crying, grateful to be saved.

Though they were grateful, none of them seemed to thank her for what she did. They knew that she was one of _them_, but they ignored the fact that she betrayed them just to save the villagers. She turned around and began to walk away from the villagers, heading to the lake hidden far in the woods.

Arriving there, she looked down at the rain hitting on the lake's surface, forming pretty circles of little water waves. Her mind began to wander as she remembered _him_, the only one who used to need her, appreciate her for what she is. The one who showed her the light through the darkness; the one who sealed some of her darkness and brought about her bright side.

She then held on the pink crystal pendant she had on her neck, smiling to herself.

"The time has come. My search for you has begun, Ryuu. We will be reunited again, and I am sure of that." As she whispered these words, the crystal started to glow, suddenly creating a field of powerful circle around her feet. "To the witch's place, I go." She whispered again, a painful smile on her face. Her body began to fade slowly and before long, she was gone.

A figure stood behind a tree nearby, crossing his arms as he concluded what had happened before his eyes and what had been said before his ears. He smirked, "So, you betrayed us just to search for him? I wish you luck with darkness on the way, then. There shall be no light in your path, unless a guy like him appears. May your future be… dark." He then chuckled, before vanishing with the wind.

* * *

She was the first one to arrive. The first person she saw was a lady in dark attire, looking quite surprised to see her. The witch was very pretty, and she somehow admired her. She then let out a smile to the witch. Before the witch could say anything, something appeared upon them, and it revealed a boy carrying a girl in his arms, his face full of worry. The witch turned her attention to the boy, and she observed the scene in front of her with interested eyes.

Before long, two more figures appeared before them. A blond wizard with a white coat, and a strong-willed warrior with a dark appearance. Since the two were very tall, she had to look up. Again, she listened to their conversations as they introduced themselves.

Upon her realization, the attention was then turned towards her.

"I am Nazaiya Kudoki of the Shadow Valley." She introduced herself simply, bowing in respect.

The witch nodded in approval, before asking;  
"You do know where we are, right?"  
"Yes," the wizard said, "a place where you grant wishes at a proper or high price."  
"That's correct," the witch nodded. "Well then, since all of you are here, that means each of you have some sort of a wish to make…"

And at once, the two tall guys began to speak of their different wishes. The wizard doesn't want to return to his place, but the warrior does.

"What about you?" the witch asked, turning her attention to Nazaiya.  
"I want to travel between dimensions to search… for a particular part of me." She said, her eyes full of sorrow.  
The witch paused for a bit. She then explained that this was a hard thing to do, and paying separately won't do. She called out for each one of them, naming their wishes in order. She then asked for everyone to give up their most precious belonging, and at the thought of that, Nazaiya curled her lips, almost reluctant to agree.

The witch asked the warrior for his sword, and the wizard for his tattoo. Nazaiya sensed each and every emotion they felt, and for the wizard, she knew it was more than just a tattoo. But still, he let out a smile. The witch then turned to her, looking at her for a few seconds.

"Well then, I shall ask for your precious belonging now… but you don't have one, do you?" she asked.  
"I do." Nazaiya replied, before taking off the crystal pendant on her neck. Just as she handed it to the witch, a light glowed upon her body as she closed her eyes for a few seconds.

As she opened her eyes, she found the people around her were looking at her with shock written on their faces. Her white, stained blood coat had now turned into a dark, black cloak. Her eyes were deep pink, almost red. The witch wasn't surprised, though.

"This was precious, but _not_ very precious. But I'll accept this for now." She said, before talking to the others again. A guy came running towards them, carrying some sort of fluffy animals in his arms. The two animals were introduced shortly after.

"There is no coincidence in this world. There is only destiny. You were all destined to meet each other." The witch spoke, before saying the price for the boy called 'Syaoran'.

Hearing that the boy had to give up his relationship, Nazaiya couldn't help but feel the sadness as much as Syaoran does. She knew what it feels like, at least, she almost did.

The rain had been pouring down and unnoticed, and everyone was quiet for a moment to hear the boy's decision. In the end, he spoke. "I won't let Sakura die!" he said with such force, that Nazaiya was sure to know how much he loved the girl.

The witch then began to explain about how different the worlds and dimensions were going to be, and how tough they are. How different the same person in another world would be, and how different the living standards and everything are.

After her words, the 'Mokona' began to glow as it grew very large wings, absorbing the people it was supposed to. They were all pulled in by force, and before long, they had all moved into an alternate dimension, not knowing where they were heading to. The last thing Nazaiya remembered was the witch's harsh but kind words, before she blacked out.

As they vanished, the sky began to clear up and the sun began to shine upon the witch's place.

"Well then, good luck on your journey." The witch said, looking up at the clear sky.

**To be continued…**

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**A/N**: Thank you for your interest and reading till the end of this! Read on forward if you'd like, I appreciate it all! Thank you~ ^_^


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2.**

Nazaiya's eyes fluttered open as she heard a commotion around her. She slowly sat up, and saw that the blond and that 'Mokona' was trying to wake up Syaoran. His name was the only one she remembered thus far, unfortunately.

The moment Syaoran woke up, he called out for a girl's name. Nazaiya smiled, seeing how strong he held on the girl even when he's unconscious. The blond spoke to him, and she listened attentively as she moved to lean on the wall and crossed her legs.

"I'm Syaoran." He introduced himself when he was talking with the blond.  
"Ah, my name is very long, so you can just call me Fai." The blond said, pointing at himself. "And the black one over there, what's your name?" he called out for the 'black' guy at the corner.  
"Hey! It's Kurogane!" the 'black' guy argued with a pissed face on, and Nazaiya slightly giggled.  
Ignoring this 'Kurogane', the blond turned his attention towards her. "Oh, you're awake as well! What's your name?"  
"Nazaiya." She said simply, letting out a welcoming smile.

Then again, he turned his attention towards the boy. The boy was worried that the girl's body was extremely cold, and suddenly, the blond pulled out a feather from behind the boy. They were all surprised, but not her. She only observed when the feather sparkled, going inside the girl's body. She eyed the blond wizard suspiciously, crossing her arms as she did so.

They were talking about the feather, and she listened intently. She knew she has heard about the feather before, but she couldn't quite remember anything about it. And so, she decided to keep quiet about it.

"Will you tell me when there's a feather close by?" Syaoran asked Mokona with a serious face on.  
Mokona nodded, "Of course!"  
"….Thank you." Syaoran smiled.  
"I don't plan on helping you." Kurogane spoke."I just wanted to return to my place, so I won't be helping you. You hear me?"  
Syaoran nodded, "Yes, I won't trouble you."

Kurogane was surprised with his enthusiasm, and Fai laughed.

"Syaoran, you're so serious!" Fai chuckled.  
"What about you?" Kurogane asked the wizard, and Fai smiled.  
"Yes, I'll help him. Returning to my world isn't my priority anyway. I'll help as long as there isn't any harm. Besides, I don't have anything to do~" Fai replied happily.

Something about his smile was bothering her. Nazaiya weren't sure why, but it made her remember the guy that she was looking for, but their smiles were not the same. But still, seeing that cheerful smile made her heart soar with warmth.

"Hey, you over there. What about you?" Fai called out for her, and she was brought back to reality.  
For a moment, she startled. "Ah, well. I'm searching for something as well, so I know how it feels. Helping another person who's in search of something won't hurt, right?" she said with a smile.

Just then, the door opened and came in a couple, bringing in trays of drinks and food along.  
"I'm Arisugawa Sorata!" the guy exclaimed. "And this is my wife!" he directed to the lady.  
"I am Arashi." The lady introduced herself.

After a while of talking, they welcomed all of them and pushed open the curtains to reveal the country; The Republic of Hanshin.

At the sight of the night sky and the lights on the streets, Nazaiya felt a sudden rush of pain inside her body. She gasped silently, grasping her cloak to hold in the little pain. Something inside her throbbed with pain. It was just for a few seconds, but her eyes twitched when it was over. She blinked for a few seconds to adjust her sight, before taking a deep breath to calm down. There was something happening inside her, or precisely, her _heart_.

A gloved hand held one of hers, making her surprised. Nazaiya looked up to see Fai, looking at her as he sat right next to her.  
"You okay there?" he asked with a smile.  
"I'm fine." She replied, with a smile as well. "Thank you."

Not noticing anything, the couple began to explain about the world or country they were in. They told all about the symbols of tiger and whatnot. Fai kept asking questions beside her, and all she did were listening. Truth is, she can't concentrate anymore. The pain earlier brought a little shock to her.

She then learned about the kudan, which she tried so hard to understand through her fazed mind. In the end, she agreed to them when they said to look for the feather. She has nothing to lose by helping them, anyway. As long as they stay as they are, and they don't get in her way.

"You guys can stay here as long as you'd like, because it's our hotel!" Sorata exclaimed, and Syaoran thanked the two. "It's almost midnight, so let's sleep. I'll show you guys the rooms."  
Arashi told Syaoran that he can stay with Sakura in the room, and Fai and Kurogane had to share a room.

"There is another room that you can stay, Nazaiya-san," Arashi said, and Nazaiya stood up.  
"I'll just go with that, then." She replied, following Arashi as she showed her the room.

Being alone in the room, she took off her black, dull cloak and hanged it on the wall. There was a mirror in the room, and she looked at her reflection; she had a white blouse that went past her knees, with pink linings around from the sleeves to the skirt, her hair that went past her shoulders, bangs that covered her forehead, and her fair, white skin. She let out a small smile. Somehow, things were moving on so fast for her at the moment, and she was thrown into an adventure with strangers. She couldn't be any less amused.

Nazaiya then pulled the thing she was supposed to sleep on, which was called 'futon', next to the wall and far away from the window. She began to lie down and shifted aside, looking at the wall beside her. For some reason, she couldn't bring herself to sleep.

There were a lot of things to think about. Yes, Nazaiya _did_ decided that she wanted to go on an adventure to find _a part of her_, but she's surprised and how quick she agreed to help out the others. Syaoran, Kurogane, Mokona and... Fai, was it? Well, that mage sure is cute. His smile, though, reminded her so much of _him_. Oh well. For now, she won't get in their way and would just go with the flow. No point getting into trouble without any company, anyway.

"I wonder how he could bear such an enormous amount of magic within him?" Nazaiya spoke to herself amidst the silence of her room, her mind drifting back to Fai. She wasn't expecting an answer, but she was intrigued that she had found someone of her own; someone who wields magic.

Her pain inside has subsided, and she still was not sure why or how it came by. What was that she felt, after sensing all the darkness in this world? The day has been long and there was a lot to take in, with her now having to travel with strangers on many different worlds. Nazaiya then began to get sleepy after having to think of everything, and before long, she fell into a deep slumber.

**To be continued…**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3.**

It was a typical weekday morning in the Republic of Hanshin. Fai, Kurogane and Syaoran were all ready to go outside and take a stroll around, looking at the place to know about the kudan and maybe, to find the feather. They were all waiting for that other girl in their group, which take slightly longer to appear that morning.

When she was finally ready, Nazaiya stepped out of the hotel's front door and joined the guys, and Arashi came along. The three finally were able to see her true form when she's in normal clothes. As they actually began to notice, Nazaiya had a straight hair that went past her shoulders a bit, and she had a pair of pretty deep pink eyes. She was wearing a plain, pastel pink blouse with a pair of jeans, something that she felt very comfortable the first time she tried them. She decided to just go with a simple look that day, anyway.

"Now that everyone's here, I guess you guys are good to go. I should be going now too!" Sorata said, and he went to Syaoran, before giving the boy a purse shaped like a frog. "Here, there's lunch money in it. Use it wisely alright?"  
"Hey, why'd you give that to the boy?" Kurogane asked, annoyed.  
"Because he looks the most trustworthy!" he answered with a happy smile, which made Fai and Nazaiya giggling at the side.

After Syaoran was assured by Arashi that she would take care of Sakura, they all began to venture in the city. The busy city was very crowded, to their amazement. Nazaiya looked around, always in search for someone familiar… just in case.

"Nazaiya-chan! Are you amazed by these tall buildings too?" Fai asked, surprising her for a bit.  
"A-Ah, well sort of." She was half-lying.  
"What about you Kuro-tan? And Syaoran?" he asked more.  
"Don't call me that!" the 'black' guy got angry, again.  
"No, I haven't seen anything like this scenery…" Syaoran answered.

They then continued on walking, till they met a fruit vendor.  
"Welcome! Come and buy some fresh apples!" he spoke loudly.  
Syaoran looked at the apple in confusion. "This is an apple?" he asked.  
"Of course it is, child!" the fruit vendor answered.  
Fai was confused as well. "Eh? Is the apple in your country different, Syaoran?"

After some argue with what apples look like, from pears to laki fruit, they all decided to buy some apples and ate it at a bridge. Surprisingly, everyone was impressed with the taste.

"Wow, this is really juicy…" Nazaiya said, letting out her thought for once.  
They were somehow surprised.  
"How are apples in your country then, Nazaiya-chan?" Fai asked, taking a bite from his apple.  
"Well… Fruits in my world are all black and taste like… I don't know, tasteless?" She answered, staring at the apple in her hand.  
"Well, guess we _are_ from different worlds after all." Fai shrugged happily. "Oh, I forgot to ask, how did you guys came by to the dimensional witch's place?"  
Syaoran looked at the wizard. "I was sent by the priest in my country…"  
"Ah, then that means the priest is really something! What about you Kuro-rin?" Fai asked Kurogane, and he was yelled at again because of the name.  
"I was sent forcefully by the princess of my country." Kurogane then said.  
"Oooh, you must have done something bad~" Fai cooed, making the said ninja pissed more than he already was. "And you?" Fai asked Nazaiya, tilting his head to the side.

Nazaiya bit on her apple, chewed on it, and look up at the tall blond.

"The crystal I gave to the witch contained enough power of transportation. I don't have that much power in me, I guess?" she answered, "And what about you, Fai-san?".  
"Wahh, you finally called my name!" he clapped happily. "I went there on my own. No matter how strong a magic one has, they could only use the power of transportation _once_. That's why the priest in Syaoran's country transferred him and Sakura to the dimensional witch instead." Fai was talking seriously, and Nazaiya observed that other side of him intently.

"...I know you can do more than that, though." Nazaiya mumbled, before nibbling on the apple once more. Luckily, the others didn't hear it, except for Fai. He blinked in surprise for a bit, before putting a finger on his lips with a wink, signaling her to keep quiet about it. Nazaiya nodded with a smile. Well, there must have been reasons why he kept it a secret, right?

Syaoran was quiet for a moment, as if reminiscing over something.  
"Sakura…" he muttered slowly.

Suddenly, there was a loud commotion nearby and everybody looked up. There, stood proudly on top of the buildings is a huge gang in black, with some sort of goggles on. Apparently, as the people around said, they came to fight for territories… _again_.

"Hyuu~ So cool!" Fai whistled. It happened in almost a flash, when everyone let out their kudans and a fight started. A huge one, which is a battle between kudans. Nazaiya backed off a bit and remained unnoticed, not wanting to get involved with all the mess.

As the leader of the group unleashed his kudan, she heard gasps of amazement. She was surprised as well, that a kudan could be that huge. And another thing that happened was, Syaoran saved a kid. Around his age, maybe? Nazaiya looked as the two kudans tried to defend their owners; one of a fire element, and the other is water. And it didn't take long before the leader declared that he likes the boy because of the power Syaoran had.

"Hey, the police are coming!" one of the members shouted, making the other members alarmed. Shougo, as the leader said his name was, somehow cursed under his breath. "Everyone, separate!" he shouted, before turning to Syaoran. "I can't wait until I see you again." He then left, alongside his friends.

Syaoran's kudan went back inside him, and he felt really warm as he held his chest. He was truly amazed.

Nazaiya then began to walk near him, alongside Fai and Kurogane.  
"Wow, was that all your doing? That was great!" Fai praised Syaoran.  
Syaoran shrugged. "I don't really know…" he said, before remembering about the other boy he saved earlier. "Are you alright?" he asked worriedly, helping that boy to stand up. He was then surprised when he found out that the boy's kudan appeared in the same form of its owner.  
"Anything is possible." Kurogane said.

"Um… where's Mokona?" Nazaiya asked. Just then everyone noticed the disappearance of the fluffy ball of cuteness.  
"Ah, there it is!" Fai pointed towards a group of girls who were hugging Mokona, squealing happily at its softness.  
Nazaiya came over to the girls, and Mokona then hoped on to her. The squealing girls stopped as they saw her, somehow sensing a scary aura around her for no reason. They then began to leave, waving Mokona as they went by.  
"Where were you, Mokona?" Fai asked.  
"I was on Kurogane's head…" Mokona spoke, "but then he threw me off!" it made a sad face, which was ignored by Kurogane.

Mokona then began to tell Syaoran that it sensed the feather's presence, but at that exact moment, Nazaiya felt like she was being watched. She turned around, staring directly at a building behind her. She looked up, glaring at the top of the building, as if she knew someone was looking at her. That particular person was hiding right now, and she could feel it. She knew she had to do something.

"Can I be excused for some time?" Nazaiya spoke softly, with a gentle smile on her lips.  
"Ehh, where are you going?" Fai asked. "Won't it be dangerous for you to be out alone?"  
"I'm fine. Just gonna look for things… I'll meet you guys at the hotel later alright?" she grinned.  
"Hmph, just go." Kurogane said, uninterested.  
"….Thanks." She said, before turning around and walking away through the crowd.

When she was sure she was out of sight, Nazaiya looked up on top of the buildings again, trying to sense where the observer was. Being trained since she was a child, tracking someone she knows was a piece of cake. Without hesitation, Nazaiya ran through the crowd and busy city towards the abandoned building. It was surely creepy, but she was more than used to this sort of place.

She slowly entered the building, fully aware of the dim surrounding.  
"Come out." She simply said, which came out more as an order.

A figure appeared before her. A male, someone who knew her well and vice versa. Someone who resembles the one she needs to search for. The biological brother of the person she seeks. This person had a slight hidden fang in his mouth, and that what makes it easier for Nazaiya to recognize him.

"My, aren't you eager to meet me?" the male said, smiling from ear to ear.

Wicked, as she always had thought of him.

"Not really. What are you doing here?" she asked, with deep hatred within her eyes.  
"Can't you ask something else? Like how I got here… Or why I'm here…"  
She frowned in disgust."Then tell me, Ryoji. Why, and how, did you got here?"  
"Firstly, I'm here to check up on how the girl's that had killed her comrades is doing. Is she happy now, living with new people? And secondly, that's none of your business." He smirked.

Unfortunately, his answers weren't satisfying enough for her.

"Get out of my way, Ryoji. You wouldn't dare to stop me." She challenged him.  
"I don't mean to stop you, but since our paths crossed, I thought I should pay you a visit... _Now and then._"  
"Now and then? You mean, you've been observing me since before?" she scowled.

Ryoji doesn't answer. He smirked, before letting out a low chuckle.

"Careful there, Nazaiya. If you don't watch it, you'll fall into that endless trap of love my brother just because you love him? That's bullshit. Sooner or later, your heart will change. And you'll find out the truth. And then you'll be _crushed_."  
"…What do you mean 'the truth'?" her frown grew deeper.  
"Well, that's for you to find out. My job here is done. Ryuu is never coming back to you." he smirked.  
"I don't understand what you're saying, but I do know that I _will _find him, and I'll bring him back. That is none of your business, and I will _never _let you stop me." she spat with determination.

Ryoji let out a low chuckle, which then turns into a wicked laugh.

"Believe what you will, but you can't change fate. You'll fail, and I'll make sure to be there to see it."

With those words, a sudden darkness swirled around Ryoji and swallowed him, as he smirked with challenge at the female in front of him. Nazaiya was about to counter his words, but he was gone before her eyes. She bit her bottom lip in anger, as she clenched her fists tightly.

She knew it. Ryoji was the Demon Lord's son, alright. He was pure evil, and had always hurt her since they were kids. On the other hand, Ryuu was the kindest to her. He was gentle, he was sickly, but he was full of love and affection, but he disappeared without Nazaiya ever could tell him about her true feelings. It's been years since he was gone, but she knew that this is the only chance she had to find him.

And she _will_ succeed, no matter what. As long as her feelings don't waver.

Nazaiya breathed in, determination filling up her heart. "I'll prove how wrong you are, Ryoji. Just you wait."

**To be continued…**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4.**

There was a faint knock on the door, and Nazaiya's eyes shot open.

"Nazaiya-san? This is Arashi. Are you awake?" a voice came from outside.  
"Yeah, I just woke up." She answered groggily, wondering how she fell asleep.  
"Then come join us, we're just about to have breakfast." Arashi said. "And the other guys are going out again today.  
"…I'll be down in a bit. Thanks." Hearing Nazaiya's words, Arashi began to walk away from the room as her faint footsteps were heard.

Nazaiya sat up and tried to adjust her sight, realizing that morning has come. She didn't remember how she fell asleep though. Taking a deep breath, she stood up and began to get ready for the day.

Downstairs, the atmosphere was lively as usual. Mokona was trying to steal Kurogane's meal and the ninja would be angry at the fluffy ball, as always. Fai would be laughing in the corner, and Syaoran would eat his meal silently.

At the sight of the her, Mokona hopped off Kurogane with food in its mouth. Kurogane failed to catch him however, losing his pancake that morning. Mokona went near Nazaiya as she sat down, preparing to tell a lot of stories to her.

"Good morning!" it greeted.  
"Oh, 'morning Mokona." She smiled.  
"Nazaiya-chan! Do you know something? Yesterday after you went away, a guy named Masayoshi who Syaoran saved brought us to a restaurant. Syaoran met two people who resembled the king and priest in his country!" Mokona exclaimed happily.  
Nazaiya looked at Syaoran. "Really?" she asked in surprise.  
"Ah, yes." The boy nodded.

They then talked some more, but she was beginning to get lost in thought. Does meeting people resembling the ones in a former country is different from finding the person itself? What if she found Ryuu but he was just a person from that world? What if...

"Nazaiya-chan?" Fai's worried voice brought her back to reality.  
"Eh, y-yes?" she answered, clumsily dropping her spoon on her plate with a clatter.  
"Are you alright? We were asking where you went to earlier." he said with a smile.  
She stuttered, "I'm fine. I met... Someone that looked like a person in my world as well, so, haha..."

As she trailed off, she could feel the suspicious gazes around her, but she ignored it and continued eating after picking up her spoon again. She just told a lie. Well, couldn't be helped, eh.

"Oh, and we discovered that maybe the feather is in a kudan." Fai then said, making Nazaiya look at him.  
"I see…" she mumbled. "Then we're going to search for someone who has a strong kudan?"  
And the wizard nodded happily.

* * *

The sky was clear that day, as they all went out to search for the feather.

"As I thought, nobody would walk with their kudans out…" Fai said, looking at the crowd of people walking around.  
"And it's not like anyone would just give up the feather if we ask for it, either." Kurogane added.

Suddenly, a boy appeared from the walls, literally. It stuck his head out and smiled, as another boy that resembled him came.

"Syaoran-kun!" he called out, and everyone looked at him.  
"Ah, Masayoshi-kun." Syaoran let out a relieved sigh.  
"Have you found what you were searching for?" he asked. "If not, then I can help you! It's Sunday today, so I have the day off."  
Nazaiya looked at the kudan that was now making its way inside the boy's body. "Hey," she spoke, "was that your kudan? It could track people, right?"  
"Oh, yes." Masayoshi nodded, "but that's all it can do… Pretty useless I guess."  
"That's not true. That power is really amazing." Syaoran praised him.

All of a sudden, something flew down from the sky at a fast speed. Fai and Kurogane who were aware of it managed to dodge it, but in a flash, it took Masayoshi and Mokona away with its beak, leaving the four people in a shock. A paper was left on the ground, and Syaoran quickly took it.

"I'll be waiting at the Hanshin Palace." he read it out loud, before calling for the others. "Guys, look at this!"

Realizing that Syaoran was talking in a weird language, they all began to speak something which also came out as another language. None of them understand each other now. Nazaiya felt overwhelmed, hearing all sort of languages in her ears.

But then it clicked in their heads; "Mokona!" they voiced out, knowing well that this was all caused by Mokona's absence. Though they weren't sure of who said what, they came to an agreement to go to the said palace. Fai then reached for Nazaiya's hand, before he dragged her along as they all ran to the palace. The girl was surprised, but she couldn't just pull away, not when the hand that held her was actually _cold_.

Arriving at the entrance of the palace, they saw Mokona and Masayoshi, being hung up high at the highest roof.

"There they are!" Fai waved at the two.  
"They seem fine to me." Kurogane added.  
Upon realization, Nazaiya spoke. "We finally can understand each other!"  
"So it _was_ because of Mokona after all…" said Syaoran.

They then began to run, heading inside. Poor Nazaiya was still dragged along, because Fai didn't let go of her hand. She was struggling to keep pace with the wizard, since he had such long legs.

Reaching someplace high where they could get near the huge palace, they stopped and looked around. There was a huge crowd around, praising some sort of an idol.

Syaoran held up the letter he got earlier and asked in a loud voice, "Excuse me! Can anyone tell me who wrote this letter?"

"I did!" a female voice answered, coming from the palace. They all looked up as the crowd began to talk loudly.  
"PRIMERA-CHAN!" they shouted, looking at the female.  
"Who the heck is this female?!" Kurogane frowned in anger.  
"How dare you say such things!" the crowd answered him. "She can sing, dance and has sexy legs! She's a cutie, and she's an amazing idol! She's the best!"  
Ignoring the noisy crowd, Syaoran shouted. "Please let Mokona and Masayoshi go!"  
"Eh?" Primera was surprised. "This is not Syaoran?"  
"No! _I_ am Syaoran!" he said.

As the idol was getting mad at her followers, Nazaiya slowly tried pulling her hand away from the wizard's strong grip.  
"Fai-san…" she called out.  
"Hm? What is it, Nazaiya-chan?" he asked with a smile.  
"Can you let go of my hand?" she asked, trying to reply with a smile as well.  
"Ah… I'm sorry~" he apologized, finally letting go.

Fai then turned his attention away, and towards the idol.  
"If you want them back, you have to fight me first!" Primera challenged them.  
"Well, I'll go!" Fai volunteered.  
"How are you going to go up there?" Kurogane asked.  
"By using my kudan." Fai answered, almost proudly.

He closed his eyes for a few moments, and a huge kudan appeared before him. A very huge phoenix, proudly spreading its wings. Like a person who has mastered the art of flying, he slowly rose to the sky and made his way high up, to where Primera was.

"Wow, he could fly!" Syaoran exclaimed, sounding excited.  
"His kudan is really something." Kurogane added.  
Nazaiya looked at the wizard, before smiling. For some reason, he looked very…. charming.

Primera then took out a microphone after complaining that she couldn't even fly with her kudan, before letting out a loud welcoming phrase which sends out a large bulk of letters out. The letters went to Fai, hitting him as an explosion formed and a loud noise was heard.

Gasping, Syaoran shouted. "Fai-san!"

It didn't take long before the wizard appeared again after the smoke subsided, smiling as he was being protected by his kudan. Though Fai was praising how amazing the country was, Primera attacked him continuously, without mercy. She was pissed at how fast Fai moved, and how easily he dodged.

Kurogane eyed him suspiciously. "He's dodging without using his kudan…"  
"I can see that. He's used to fighting, as well…" Syaoran said. "You can see how powerful he is, just by looking into his eyes."  
"Hmph, guess you're not as dumb as you look." Kurogane smirked.

There were a lot of explosions in the air, Fai wasn't attacking at all and the loud noises were really disturbing. Nazaiya knew she had to do something. Being unnoticed, she jumped off the place where they were standing.

Still angry, Primera let out another huge, strong blow over Fai. This time, he couldn't dodge it and it really hit him hard, sending him flying.

As Fai was falling down, he was caught in mid-air by an animal, making him sit on it. To be exact, a kudan. He looked up and saw Nazaiya, standing on top of one of the roofs of the castle as she controlled the kudan with the tip of a finger. The kudan is a Pegasus. A fierce, black one that has large wings and flames in his eyes, ready to kill anyone. Nazaiya then ordered the kudan to put the wizard down, but Fai quickly called for his kudan again and jumped off the Pegasus.

"If you don't mind Nazaiya-chan," he smiled at her, "I would like to finish this myself."

Nazaiya jumped off the roof and flew beside the flying Fai, her kudan obediently flying before her.

"I'm sorry, but I _would_ mind." She said, eyeing Primera, sending shivers down the idol's spine. "But I can't bother a man's fight, can I? So… do as you wish. But make it quick."

For some reason, Primera annoyed the hell out of her.

Fai chuckled. "Are you jealous, Nazaiya-chan?" he asked playfully.  
"What? Of course not!" she argued back with a very, very slight blush upon her cheeks.  
"Naww, Nazaiya-chan is blushing!" he teased, and she almost attacked him playfully with her kudan.

Primera was starting to get annoyed. "Hey! Are you guys going to just chat over there?! Fine then!" she shouted angrily, before aiming her weapon towards the two.

"Ahh, I guess I really should stop her now." Fai said, ready to go.  
Without a word, Nazaiya sighed before fleeing away, leaving the wizard chuckling to himself again.  
"Aww, she has a cute side too." He muttered, before flying quickly towards Primera.

Primera let out yet another blow, and Fai didn't dodge it this time. Instead, he jumped on the kanji letters and ran towards the idol, making everyone surprised.

In seconds, Fai was hovering over her, inches away from her face.  
"I don't want to hurt such a cute girl." He winked, "So can you please stop now?"  
Primera's eyes became teary of embarrassment. "I won't lose!" she shouted, resulting in another explosion.

This time, her attack went to the roof where Masayoshi and Mokona were hanging from. As a result, the two flew in the air, before being caught by Masayoshi's kudan.

Just then, another commotion was heard. And there, standing at one of the gates, was Shougo.

"What do you think you're doing, Primera?" he asked with a frown.  
"Shougo-kun!" Primera gasped.

And Mokona mekyo-ed.

**To be continued… **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5.**

The noisy crowd cheered on as they witnessed the kudan-fight before their eyes. The sky was filled with explosions and clashes of fire and water, the elements of both Syaoran's and Shougo'skudan.

Fai and Kurogane were standing safely somewhere near the palace, looking up as they looked at the two fought.  
"Syaoran is really cool!", Fai praised with a smile, "and he's not just a handsome kid."  
Kurogane looked at him. "He also seemed to know that you're not just a playful person".  
"Yes, plus he's more than just someone who loves archaeology." The wizard said. "And our Nazaiya-chan... Well, she's not scared of facing a fight head-on either."

The two then turned their attention towards the said female. But just then, right before their eyes, Nazaiya who was standing on a higher place, fell backwards and lost her consciousness. And at that time, Shougo let out a huge wave of water with his kudan, occupying the palace with some sort of tsunami. Like an instinct, Kurogane jumped to take cover at a higher ground while Fai flew to save Nazaiya, grabbing and bringing her along to the ninja.

As Fai landed, he quickly looked at her in his arms, examining her face. To his surprise, a warm, red liquid was dripping down one of her nostrils.  
"Blood…" Fai muttered.

* * *

Just as they all got back to the hotel, Syaoran ran as fast as he could to Sakura's room. He was more than excited, knowing that now he had retrieved the feather that was actually in Masayoshi's kudan all along.

Sorata and Arashi smiled seeing the happy Syaoran, but their expression changed when they saw Kurogane carrying a weak Nazaiya along. Her eyes were open now, but they were only half-lidded.

"What happened?!" Sorata asked worriedly.  
"We aren't sure either," Fai answered, "but we'll just let her rest for now."  
The couple then nodded in agreement.

As Kurogane was walking through the hallway, Nazaiya lifted her head, signaling the ninja to put her down.  
"I'm fine now. I want to see the princess as well." She said, though her voice was unconvincing.  
"Fine." Kurogane put her down with a frown. "But don't push yourself."  
"No, she'll have to rest now." Arashi suddenly came from behind them, and looked at Nazaiya. "Her room is just by the end of the hallway, so I'll take her there."  
Though she was reluctant, Nazaiya went to her room with a sigh.

Stepping in her room, Nazaiya quickly sat down by the wall and leaned against it, closing her eyes in exhaustion. Arashi held out a glass of water for her, and she took it silently.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" Arashi asked.  
Nazaiya looked down at her glass. "I don't know... I felt my head spinning all of a sudden, so I had to summon my kudan back in. It was exhausting and overwhelming, too."

Arashi looked at Nazaiya for a moment, contemplating on whether she should tell or not.

"Your powers..." Arashi hesitated, "…had awakened when you handed over your crystal. As you get around darkness or anything with a sense of evil, something inside you would absorb that dark aura. Thus, your powers would gradually grow, as much as the blackness seeps in through you."

"...Powers? Awakened?" Nazaiya blinked in confusion. "What do you mean? I do have magic in the first place, but... what kind of powers are we talking about?"  
"I only know this much, but yes. The amount of magic you have right now, is definitely different from this power that had just awakened. The power is called Fortz Magic, and it is only bestowed upon those who had artificial hearts..."

A silence passed by.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I understand what you're talking about, Arashi-san." Nazaiya replied with a frown, not quite making sense of what's happening.

Arashi gave her a smile. "It's alright. In due time, you will find out the truth. The reason for your journey... will bring you to your answer. However, please be careful on your journey, and please don't strain your powers too much."

Taking it as an advice of a worried sister-like figure, Nazaiya nodded with a smile and thanked Arashi. Arashi then excused herself, and went out of the room. As she paced through the hallways, she cast her eyes down worriedly. "May your fate not be bad as I dreamed it to be..."

As silent crept up upon her, Nazaiya stood up and went to the window. She pushed open the curtains widely, and was happy to know that it was raining. She loves the rain, for whole lot of reasons. Right outside, she saw a figure standing in the rain. She looked closely, and was surprised to know who it was.

"Syaoran…?" she muttered.

There were three kudans protecting the said boy from the rain. And suddenly, they became four. Nazaiya's kudan had joined them, without having to be ordered.

Suddenly, there was a faint knock on the door, to her surprise.  
"Come in." she said simply, her eyes still glued at the boy.

The door was opened, and came in tall, friendly figure. Nazaiya turned her head to look at the person, and she smiled.  
"What's wrong, Fai?" she asked.  
"Just checking up on you. Why are you not resting?" Fai asked with a smile, approaching the window. His voice is gentle and soothing, and it made her feel... safe, for some reason.

"I just wanted to look at the rain. But Syaoran's out there…" she pointed out.  
"I know." He said. "Sakura didn't remember him and asked 'who are you?', so…"  
"I see... He's crying, right?"  
"Seems like it. But crying is a way to show that you're strong as well."

Nazaiya touched the window glass in front of her, feeling the slight cold on it. "Forgotten by the one you love most... Hurts so much, I guess."  
Fai stared at her, before smiling again. "Have you ever felt that kind of pain, Nazaiya-chan?"

She turned her eyes away from the window and looked up to the blond, his beautiful blue eyes boring into her pink orbs. It was mesmerizing, and it felt like she could drown in the ocean of his eyes. They were unreadable, mixed with kindness, and something she wasn't sure of. But the gentleness in his eyes; it made her heart skipped a beat, making her at a loss of words.

"Nazaiya-chan?" his voice broke the somewhat long silence between them, and she was brought back to reality.

She decided not to answer and instead, gave him a rather genuine smile. She glanced out of the window for a bit to get her thoughts in order, before looking back up at him.

"Thank you Fai-san," She smiled, her eyes shone with appreciation towards the wizard. "For saving me when I was losing consciousness earlier."  
"And thank you, too Nazaiya-chan. You saved me too when I was falling, so we're even now." Fai spoke, before walking towards the door.

"Have a good rest, Nazaiya-chan." He said as he opened the door.  
"Oh, Fai, there's something I wanted to ask." She stopped him.  
"Hm?"  
"When you held my hand earlier… Why was your hand so cold?" she tilted her head in confusion.  
The wizard chuckled. "It's not that my hand was cold, but your hand was very, very warm. Good night, Nazaiya-chan."

With a smile, Fai closed the door.

Just as he was in the hallway, Fai looked down, his eyes clouded with misery.  
"Do you not know, or do you pretend to not know, Nazaiya-chan?" he spoke in a low voice, almost a whisper. "Your powers are eating you up inside…"

* * *

The next day, the group was ready to leave for another world. Nazaiya was late that day as well, thus she quickly got ready and joined the group outside.

For the first time, she got to see the princess herself. In her eyes, the princess' eyes were almost empty, like a doll. She looked rather weak, but she's really pretty.

"Ah, Nazaiya-chan is here!" Fai exclaimed. "Sakura-chan, this is the girl I talked about last night."  
Nazaiya bowed slightly. "Sakura-san, I'm Nazaiya."  
"Oh, hello." Sakura simply answered, her voice soft and weak.

When everyone was ready, Mokona began to fly in the air. Its wings grew as it opened its mouth, ready to transport to another place.

"Thank you." Syaoran smiled.  
"Take care and good luck!" Sorata waved them, alongside Arashi.

A wave of wind surrounded them, and they were vanishing slowly into thin air. Before long, they were completely gone, and were on their way to another dimension.

**To be continued…**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6.**

Approaching a new world through the black tunnel, Nazaiya could see a lot of people down there. With a loud crash, they all landed on some sort of a stall and scattered all the stuff that were being sold. To their amazement, they were a lot of people looking at them. It was noisy, too.

"Mokona is the center of attention!" the fluffy ball cheered.  
"Wah, there's so many people around!" Fai exclaimed, making no effort of standing up from the fall.

Suddenly, they were being overshadowed by a huge figure.  
"Who the hell are you?!" the huge figure shouted, whilst pulling Sakura's wrist harshly. "Answer me! Where did you all come from?!"

Right when he finished his words, Syaoran landed an angry blow on his huge face, making him fall back and released his grasp from Sakura. Fai, Mokona, Nazaiya and even Kurogane were very impressed by Syaoran's skills, letting out a slight cheer for the boy.

"You! Do you realize who you just kicked?!" the huge guy shouted again, wiping off his bloody nose and mouth.  
"STOP!" a loud, shrieky voice came not far from them. "Stop messing around with people you don't know, dumbass!". It was a little girl, standing proudly as she challenged the huge guy.  
"Chunhyang!" the huge guy voiced out in anger. "Who are you calling 'dumb'?!"  
"Besides you, who else is dumb around here?!" the girl fought back.

After a short while of shouting to each other, the huge guy then began to back off along with his followers. "Watch out kid, I'm gonna come back for revenge!" he managed to say, to their annoyance.

"Hyuu~ Everyone was looking at us just a moment ago." Fai said, rather happy.  
"Syaoran's amazing!" Mokona cheered.

Syaoran looked down, before realizing that they all had ruined the goods of the stall they fell on.  
"Ah, we're really sorry!" Syaoran apologized, but the vendor was not mad at all.

Syaoran then began to pick up the food and fruits that were on the floor, followed by Mokona and the others.

"Kuro-rin~ Help us too!" Fai waved at him. Though annoyed, Kurogane did help them… while muttering little curses. Sakura helped as well although she was sleepy, and once in a while she would steal glances at Syaoran. Nazaiya let out a smile, seeing how happy they were.

The girl Chunhyang looked over at them for a moment. Realizing how weird they were dressed, she couldn't help but wonder.  
"You guys look weird!" she voiced out.  
Fai laughed, before looking at Kurogane. "She said you're weird, Kuro-pon!"  
"If I'm weird, what does that makes you?!" Kurogane fought back.

Before long, the girl then took Sakura's hand before running along somewhere. Shocked, Syaoran quickly follow after them. And thus, Fai and Kurogane followed suit, apologizing to the vendor as they ran along. Nazaiya was sort of left behind, but she decided to run as well and laughed.

Chunhyang brought them all to her house, and waited for them to speak. Kurogane wasn't interested at all, and so does Nazaiya. She sat cross-legged next to him who was reading a book that was bought back in Hanshin Republic, and she was quiet. She listened to the girl's story about the Amenosa and everything, but she wasn't interested. She was still thinking of ways to track down what she seeks.

And suddenly they did introductions on themselves.  
"Chunhyang, was it? I'm Fai!" he introduced himself. "This is Sakura, Syaoran, that's Mokona. And the two sitting over there are Nazaiya and Kuro-puu."  
"It's Kurogane!" the ninja shouted, making the girl next to him jump in surprise.

Suddenly, Nazaiya felt like something was calling her. Sensing that something was approaching them at a rapid pace, she stood up and stayed away from the walls. A strong wind blew upon them, and they were put on a full alert state.

"Don't go outside!" Chunhyang warned them.

Just then, the windows opened and a strong wind made its way inside their house. The wind spiraled right outside the house, resulting in a tornado. The house was greatly shaken, and all they could do was take cover. Everyone was protecting each other, but Nazaiya bravely opened the door to step out. They all gasped in shock.

"What are you doing?!" Chunhyang shouted.  
"Nazaiya-chan!" Fai called out, unable to move.  
"Hey, come back here!" Kurogane joined in shouting for her.

She didn't want to listen. The wind was strong, but she was unfazed. The wind greatly blew through her hair, and yet her eyes were full of determination.

"_Spirit of the wind, I call upon you_." Nazaiya looked up at the tornado, as if looking straight into its eyes. She then clenched her left hand and brought it upwards. _"__Bow down to__me, and avenge your evil caller. You are now—,_" she opened her left hand wide, "_free_".

As if nodding, the tornado slowly faded into thin air. She looked up towards the place that the 'sender' was at, and smirked as the place was shaken by a huge and strong flow of wind.

Nazaiya then turned around and walked back inside the house as if nothing happened, before smiling to the surprised people in the house. Her nose slowly bled again, and she fell on her knees. Fai came to catch her, and he looked down at her worriedly. Smiling, Nazaiya closed her eyes and let out a contented sigh. "It feels nice to be in control..." she muttered softly, as her consciousness faded.

"Nazaiya!" Mokona shouted as it hopped near the two. "What happened to her, Fai?".  
"Don't worry, she's resting for a bit now." Fai then looked up, realizing that there was already a hole on the roof. "That wasn't just any normal wind, was it?"  
Chunhyang clenched her first. "No, it's not.". She looked up, taking a deep breath in. "Damn you, Ryanban!"

Back at Ryanban's castle, the crystal ball that was holding the feather in began to crack.  
"Just now the wind was coming back at us, and now this?! Who the hell has such powers?!" he shouted.

* * *

"Why do I have to fix somebody's house?" Kurogane grunted, hammering the roof of the house with a frown.  
"Because Chunhyan offered us a shelter for the night!" Fai answered happily, helping Kurogane by giving him planks of wood for the fixing.  
"But it's amazing that she lives all alone…" the ninja wondered.  
"Well, she said her mother died." Fai said, glancing over the mirror in the living room.  
"Anyway, how long are we going to stay here?!"  
"That depends on Mokona~ Sakura is still weak so Syaoran would be more than determined to search for the feather, you know…" Fai then sat down, drinking his tea.  
"Where did they go anyway?"  
"Out to spy on things, I suppose." Fai sipped his drink.  
"Hey, why do I have to do this all by myself?! What are you doing drinking tea over there!" Kurogane scolded Fai, and the blond laughed.  
"I just wanna see you work, Kuro-puu!" Fai said, waving at the ninja. "Don't be too loud or Nazaiya is going to wake up shocked!"

The blond then put his cup down and looked over the girl sleeping right beside him. He then went quiet, almost in deep thought. The time passed by with a gentle wind coming their way, and Kurogane's hammering noises. Before long, he was finished. He quickly jumped down and went in the house, putting down the hammer in annoyance.

"Seriously, if I had to do this again…." Kurogane sat down beside the tea tray and sighed. He looked over the quiet wizard, wondering. "Why are you so quiet suddenly?"  
"You know Kuro-rin, if she didn't stop the tornado earlier, this whole house could eventually be destroyed." Fai said, looking at the ninja. "And then it'll be more work for you to clean up all the mess."  
Kurogane glanced at the said girl. "She used her own powers when she knew she couldn't handle it. Might as well not use it at all."  
"I don't think that's the case. She looks like she's good at controlling her powers, anyhow." Fai said, staring into an empty space. "But I do somehow wish there's a way for her to stop using magic for now…"  
"Why is that?"  
"Well that's something that only us, people with magic knows." Fai shrugged.  
"Tch, you magicians." Kurogane grunted, and Fai smiled at him.

**To be continued…**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7.**

At the sight of Chunhyan and the others, Fai stopped playing the board game he was playing with Kurogane and greeted them all. Realizing the gloomy atmosphere, the two knew instantly.

"Something happened?" Nazaiya asked, suddenly coming out of a nearby room. She looked fine albeit a little pale, and she had changed into clothes that are similar with what Sakura and Chunhyan were wearing; a hanbok.

Sitting down next to Fai, Nazaiya listened to their story. About them being attacked and all, by the tornado again said that Ryanban's castle was protected by a powerful magic that can't be penetrated, no matter how many times she and the villagers tried.

Nazaiya frowned. Something about people using magic to harm people annoyed the hell out of her.

"Hmm. How about taking the son as a hostage?" Fai suggested, his face making a happy smile.  
"…You just suggested a crime happily." Kurogane said.  
"Anyway," Fai continued, "they say Ryanban suddenly got their powers some years ago, right? Knowing that the time that flows between dimensions are different… Then it might be—"  
"Sakura's feather…" Syaoran said,his eyes full of determination. "I will go get it."  
"But Syaoran… aren't you hurt?" Sakura stopped him, although her eyes were tired and she was still in a daze.  
"I'm not gonna stop you Syaoran," Fai said, "but Ryanban's powers aren't something you can easily overcome with physical powers alone. You have to at least break the 'seal' at the entrance."  
"Then can't any of you two do anything?" Kurogane asked, looking at both Fai and Nazaiya.  
"Nope, not at all~" Fai said happily, one of his hand stopping Nazaiya from saying anything.

Ignoring the angry Kurogane, Mokona suggested something.  
"Let's ask Yuuko!" it sang.

Using the magical red thing on his head, Mokona called out for the dimensional witch.  
"Ah, Mokona. What is it?" she asked.

After telling her the whole story, Yuuko nodded in understanding. "I see. But to break the spell, you don't even have to ask me. Fai, can you not use your powers?"  
"But I gave you that tattoo, right?" Fai answered with a smile.  
"That tattoo is just a seal, not your powers itself." Yuuko spoke.  
"But I have rules to not use magic without it." The wizard answered with an excuse.  
"Then what about Nazaiya?" the witch still won't back down.  
"She can't use them as well." Fai defended in her place, before she could say anything. "Right, Nazaiya-chan?"

Her eyes widened in response, but he just winked at her, as if it was nothing out of the ordinary.

Yuuko paused for a moment, as if she understood what he meant. "Fine. But I will need something as the price."

Before anyone could say anything, Nazaiya took Fai's magic wand voluntarily and showed it to Yuuko.  
"This will do, right?" she said, not giving a care. It was as if she was paying her revenge.  
Syaoran stopped her, "Is this okay? This is Fai-san's…"  
"Ah, it's really okay. I planned to give it anyways." Fai said happily, before handing it over for Mokona to suck it in.

Before long, Mokona let out a little, powerful ball from his mouth. Syaoran caught it, and stared it for a moment.  
"This thing..." Syaoran mumbled, "could break the spell..."

* * *

"No!" Chunhyan's voice rang through their ears. "Why can't I come along?!"  
"It'll be very dangerous, and Ryanban's powers is—" Fai tried to calm her down.  
"I know that already! I want to come too!" she fought back.

Fai glanced at Kurogane with a smile, but Kurogane looked away. "I'm not good with kids."  
Nazaiya walked pass Kurogane and muttered, "I'm not good with kids as well, but that's not the case."

She went to kneel in front of Chunhyan and held each of her shoulders.  
"Chunhyan, look at me." Nazaiya gently spoke, and Chunhyan did. "My mother died while protecting people, too. So I know how you feel. I _know well_ how you wanted to avenge your mother."  
Chunhyan wiped her tears. "You, too?"  
"Yes." Nazaiya tilted her head with a smile. "But if you join us and get hurt in the process, and maybe even killed… Will your mother, in the other world, be happy? Do you not want her to be at peace?"

Everyone was quiet. They all understood what she was saying. After all, they had all lost a loved one... and loved ones.

"Be a good girl and stay with Sakura, alright? Protect her. Can you do that much for us?" she asked again.  
The little girl was quiet.  
Sakura managed to smile at Nazaiya, before hugging Chunhyan close.

"Very well then." Nazaiya stood up. "Let's go to the castle and get Sakura's feather."

Without many words, they all began to leave the house and stepped towards the castle.

Nazaiya was walking at the very back, her eyes looking down as she walked. Fai went close and walked beside her, waiting for her respond. Getting no feedback, Fai took Mokona in his hands and smiled.

"Mokona, can you go bother Kuro-mii for a bit? I want to walk with Nazaiya-chan." The blond said, and Mokona nodded in agreement.

The fluffy ball hopped its way to the ninja's head, earning a scolding from him.  
"Fai asked me to stick with Kuro-mii!" Mokona voiced out happily. "He wanted to walk alone with Nazaiya-chan~".  
"…Must be something to do with her magic." Kurogane said.  
"Eh? Is there something wrong?" Mokona asked worriedly.  
Syaoran looked up to Kurogane. Knowing that both of them know almost nothing about magic, they shrugged it off. "Everything's fine, Mokona." Syaoran said, though it wasn't very convincing.

"Why did you do it?" Nazaiya asked, the moment Fai was beside her.  
"Were you mad that I didn't let you use your powers when Yuuko asked for it?" Fai answered with a question as well, teasing the girl with confusion.  
"I won't be as mad if you tell me why." She was now looking up at the blond, wanting an answer. "I don't understand what's happening to me. Why do I fall weak after using them? I just don't get it."  
"Hm~," Fai pretended to think, "I'm not sure, Nazaiya-chan. It _does _seem like you're weaker when you use them, that's why I told you not to. Can you promise me not to use them anymore, though?"

She was quiet for a second, blinking up at him with confusion, for asking something odd out of the blue.

"…I can't promise you that."  
"Hm, very well then, Nazaiya-chan." Fai smiled. "Ah, looks like we have arrived!"

The way Fai shifted the topic away was obvious, but Nazaiya didn't push any further. She thought that Fai was just... another stranger to begin with, so he wouldn't have known anything about her, after all. Maybe it's just an advice from a fellow magic wielder, she thought. And so, she dropped the topic and looked up in front of her.

There were multiple entrance doors around the castle's gate wall, and there was one in front of them. Before Fai could say anything, Kurogane pushed the huge door open with all his strength. To their surprise, they could only see a floating castle above the clouds in front of them, with no way of breaking through.

"Kuro-min is very impatient! The castle is protected by spells, so of course it won't be easy to get in. And that is why!" Fai clapped his hands, "It is time for the ball to make its appearance!"  
Syaoran hesitated as he held the ball. "But what do I do with it….?"  
Mokona then hopped on to Syaoran's shoulder. "Throw it!" it said, "Throw it with all your strength! Throw it inside the castle!"

Syaoran then threw the ball slowly up in the air, before flipping to kick it with all his might towards the castle. The ball flew quickly and smashed the barrier that was protecting the castle, and the doors were opened as the barrier cracked and vanished into thin air.

Nazaiya watched in amazement, admiring the boy. "I thought Mokona told Syaoran to throw, but I guess a kick works too."

Entering the castle, they had to walk through a long, quiet hallway. Though they were walking for a while, they couldn't seem to find the way. Syaoran dropped something when they entered earlier, and after walking for a while, he ended up stepping on the thing he dropped earlier.

"We came back right where we started…" Syaoran said, sounding disappointed.  
"Damn, we're just wasting our time then." Kurogane grunted.  
"Mokona is tired!" the fluffy ball hopped on to Kurogane.  
"You haven't walked at all!" the ninja scolded the playful Mokona.

Fai went to a nearby wall and put his right hand on it, as if to sense something.  
"There's a strong power force here…" he muttered, sounding serious for once.  
"Weren't you unable to use magic?" Kurogane asked suspiciously.  
"This is not magic, this is intuition!" Fai said, back to his usual self. "I'm sure you all could sense it right?"  
Syaoran looked at the wizard, before looking at the other girl who also yields magic.  
"Well," she shrugged, "it is as 'Fai-sama' says."

Fai eyed her with a smile, and she let out a playful grin.

Without wasting time, Kurogane made his way to the wall. Before anything, he punched the wall with a strong force, resulting in a huge hole that became an entryway for all of them. Mokona cheered happily for Kurogane, and Nazaiya clapped her hands in amusement.

There was some sort of a resting place at the center of the room, and there was somebody there.

"Who's there?" Syaoran asked.

A female stood up, as if welcoming the group. She wore a pretty, royalty black dress and she had a pretty crown on. There was a round jewel on the crown, resembles Mokona's though slightly different. She was very beautiful, and though she was smiling, she doesn't open her mouth when speaking.

"You have finally arrived," she spoke, "you nameless wanderers."

Nazaiya looked at the lady intently. "This is not just a witch…" she whispered to herself. "This is a demonic being…. _My kind_."

**To be continued…**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8.**

Seeing the beautiful, demonic witch made Nazaiya lost in thought. She was as if not there with the guys, as she could barely hear what they were conversing about with the witch. She looked down, her mind and heart began to crumble with a lot of things.

"We are seeking for something inside this castle," Syaoran spoke, "so could you please tell us where the Ryanban is?"  
The witch looked at Syaoran, staring deep into his eyes. "Your eyes are very pleasant… very bright…". She then turned to look at Nazaiya. "But you my dear… Very dark… and lost."

Nazaiya then looked at her with intense eyes, but she doesn't say anything.

The witch then turned her attention towards the others. "Unfortunately, I can't tell you where he is. My role is to stop you… _here_".

In a blink of an eye, the empty large room became a different place. Except for the witch herself, everyone was standing on top of tall, stone pillars. They were as if at a plain temple ground, with the mountains as the surrounding and the clouds up high.

"…An illusion?" Kurogane voiced out.  
"No," the witch stated, "this is my secret art. An illusion is only to fool people, but my secret art… is more than just pretty."

The witch pointed towards Syaoran, and as she did that, little balls of liquid flew quickly towards the boy. He dodged it, but some of it got stuck on his sleeves. The liquid damaged part of Syaoran's sleeves, melting it with a hissing, burning sound.

"The damage inflicted by my secret art is real." The witch said proudly.  
"So if we get badly hurt…" Fai muttered.  
"You die." The witch calmly replied, beginning to order her secret art on an all-out attack.

As Syaoran dodged more of it, his right foot landed on the pool underneath. Feeling a surge of pain, he quickly jumped back up, only to find that his foot was damaged by the water. Even without him saying it, it looked painful.

"If you fall into the pool, you'll melt!" Fai warned. "This witch is very tricky and strong so be careful!"

In a daze, Nazaiya jumped from one pillar to another. The water droplets barely could reach her, and she knew why. But as the witch gradually upgraded the size of the droplets, one of it burnt the end of her clothes. Jumping in a hanbok is a task itself, and being disturbed mentally is another.

Stopping at one pillar, she began to clench her fists in anger.

"Witch…. Mage… Why do they have to be different?!" Nazaiya spoke to herself angrily, causing the others to be surprised.  
"Nazaiya-chan?" Fai asked worriedly, still dodging the water balls.  
"What's got into her?" Kurogane asked Fai, but the wizard shrugged.

Seeing Syaoran's injured foot, she got even angrier as she jumped from one pillar to another, realizing that the water balls began to come at her. "If only I could heal…" she huffed. "If only those powers come back..."  
"Nazaiya-chan, are you okay?" Fai asked worriedly, trying to approach her by jumping on the pillars.  
"Don't come near!" she shouted, a tear streaming down her cheek. "I'm so confused and mad!"  
"Her heart's unstable, she can't hear us." Fai frowned, now moving away. "Syaoran, the magic is weaker up there!" the wizard then pointed towards the sky, which appeared clear and unreachable.  
"But what about you guys? And Nazaiya-san…" Syaoran doubted.  
"It's fine! Kuro-pii will handle things here somehow~ You should just kick your way up there!" Fai smiled. "As for Nazaiya-chan, she won't be like that for long, so don't worry about it."  
"….Thank you guys." Syaoran muttered. "I'll go now."

Using the long wooden stick that was obtained from one of the pillars, Kurogane launched Syaoran up as he jumped on it and kicked his way towards the clouds, breaking a different barrier before ending up at another place.

"Hyuu~ You two are so cool!" Fai cheered.  
"One escaped," the witch said, "but it can't be helped. I'll just finish you remaining children."

The witch now lashed out attacks of explosive liquid balls, and the waters that splashed on them was very painful. Still, both Fai and Kurogane don't look as affected.

"Looks like this is going to be a serious crisis, Kuro-puu!" Fai said happily.  
"Hmph." Kurogane smirked. "That girl doesn't seem to do anything except dodging, so maybe she's fine now."  
"You mean Nazaiya-chan?" Fai said, "She's never fine to begin with. You do see how the water can't get to her, right?"  
"…Something to do with her magic?" Kurogane guessed.  
"Correct! Kuro-mii is clever after all~" Fai teased. "Though I doubt she's in the right state of mind now."

As Fai finished his words, a large ball came through and was about to splash on him. Like an instinct, Kurogane pushed Fai away with his stick, sending him flying to another pillar.

"Kuro-muu, you're meeaaann!" Fai whined, holding his pained stomach.  
"If I don't do that, you'll get burnt." Kurogane spoke. "You're very strict, not letting her use her magic, and not wanting to use your own magic in this kind of situation."  
Fai didn't reply, but smiled instead.

As the two conversed on how they don't want to die, Nazaiya was now standing on the furthest pillar she could find. Having no control of making up her mind, she now began to approach the witch on her own, pillar by pillar.

"Ah, looks like we have to do something." Fai suggested, noticing Nazaiya's movements.  
"Heh…" Kurogane smirked, and Fai looked at him with a confused face.  
The witch was then ready to order her huge droplets, "Are you done with your last conversations, children? Now… bye bye."

An ocean of water waved through, surrounding them in a circle. Before the witch could do anything, she saw Fai flying down towards her and grabbing Nazaiya's hand to pull her away, and the witch smiled.

"Willing to rush your deaths?" she spoke.

Fai replied her smile, before making way for Kurogane who was swiftly approaching and to attack her. Though the witch pierced through Kurogane's shirt with her long claws, he was unharmed because of the magazine that he had. Muttering that he hated the rain, Kurogane used the stick on his hand to smash the stone on the witch's crown, breaking it as the surrounding was returned to the former plain, large room.

Thanking Kurogane with a kiss on the cheek, the witch told them that she was put under a spell because of the stone.

"You children are very full of spirit. I'm sorry for blocking your way." The witch spoke. "Your friend there…" she pointed towards Nazaiya who were now on the ground, after she pulled away harshly from Fai moments ago. "You have to help her."

Kurogane then made his way towards the said girl, attempting to get her stand on her own feet. But as Kurogane pulled up her left hand, Nazaiya pulled away harshly as she looked into Kurogane's eyes furiously. Her eyes were shaking with anger, as if something has taken control of her.

Fai then made his way past Kurogane, now kneeling to hold both of Nazaiya's hands. To Kurogane's surprise, she doesn't pull away at all. She looked down, finally coming back to her senses.

"Nazaiya-chan, it's me…" Fai whispered, holding her hands tightly in his own.  
Nazaiya looked up, realizing that it was the blond. She can now hear what they were saying, and her mind was clear, as her heart was stable.

"Fai-san…" she muttered, her breath hitched.

Wiping away her tears earlier with the pad of his thumb, Fai pulled her up to stand. Her mind was still fazed, and Fai decided to hold her hand and held her close to him.

"Well then children," the witch said, "those bastards are on the highest floor of this place."  
"Alright, let us head there." Fai smiled, strengthening his grip on Nazaiya's hand.

Nazaiya felt the intense grip on her hand, and looked up at the smiling Fai. There was a sense of regret, and yet to protect, inside him towards her. Silently, as she looked down, she smiled. Blushing slightly, she mumbled something that was barely above a whisper. "Thank you, Fai-san…"

**To be continued…**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9.**

After saying goodbyes in the land of Korio, they were being transferred into another dimension again by Mokona. Arriving at a new world, they were surprised to see a huge lake right in front of their eyes, and were only surrounded by the lush, green forest.

"There is no sign of people around…" Fai wondered. "Mokona, can you sense any of Sakura-chan's feathers?"  
"I detect a strong power…" Mokona spoke, "underneath the lake."  
Kurogane frowned. "You don't expect us to dive in there, do you?".  
"W-wait!" Suddenly a sweet, female voice came from behind them.

It was Sakura. As she was coming near and muttered something, she immediately fell asleep right then and there. Fortunately, Kurogane caught her just in time.

"She was trying so hard to stay awake at Chunhyan's place. Guess she reached her limit." Fai reprimanded, smiling his signature smile.  
"Well," Nazaiya said, "if you guys wanna go and look around, I can stay here and look out for her."  
Syaoran nodded. "I'll stay, too."  
"It's decided then." Fai exclaimed, "Me and Kuro-rin will go look around~"

After setting a small fire to warm up a bit, Fai and Kurogane began to venture in the woods, with Mokona tagging along. Seeing that they were starting to lose in sight, Nazaiya looked at the worried Syaoran.

"If you wanna go in there to check out what's in the water, I guess you should go _now_." Nazaiya suggested, pointing towards the lake.  
Syaoran looked at her for a moment. "Is it alright?"  
"Of course," she nodded, "I'll keep an eye on her so don't worry."  
As Syaoran stood up from sitting and prepared himself to go in the lake, he looked over at the girl. "Thanks, Nazaiya-san."  
She replied with a smile, before waving Syaoran as he jumped into the lake, leaving the place in silence.

Nazaiya looked up and realized that it was getting dark, and colder. Fog was starting to make its way on the lake, but she could still clearly see around her. Better yet, she _sensed _a presence of someone she knew well. She stood up, looking suspiciously around her.

"It's just the two of us now, so you better come out." Nazaiya spoke. "But don't make noises, or you'll wake the princess up."

It took a while, before she saw a figure right in front of her eyes. The figure smirked, as if mocking her.

"I thought I told you not to follow me anymore, Ryoji." Nazaiya frowned, feeling annoyed.  
"I wasn't following you. I just happen to be on the same place as you, Nazaiya." He said with a smile.  
"That couldn't be possible. How come we can meet each other on the same dimension twice? I don't think this is a coincidence." She answered with suspicious eyes.

Ryoji wasn't even bothered to answer her. Smirking again, he began to move forward, as if to attack her. Noticing his change of pace, Nazaiya quickly dodged and jumped away as he lunged forward to slash her with his short sword. She stepped back slowly, making sure she's keeping a distance from the guy.

As she noticed the change in Ryoji's eyes, Nazaiya knew well what was coming for her. Ryoji kept getting near her to attack, and she kept dodging away and jumping around. Finally he stopped attacking as Nazaiya landed right in front of Sakura, who was sleeping soundly under a tree. Nazaiya gasped for air, her stamina was running out. Ryoji put his sword away, folding his arms in satisfaction.

"I see you have been training well, Nazaiya." Ryoji said, as if it was a compliment.  
"Are you trying to kill me?!" she said in between breaths.  
"Nope, just testing you. You learn a lot from your friends, eh?" He mocked, "Did that mage thought you anything?"  
"He is a wizard!" she argued, "and you don't have the right to say anything about my friends!"  
"I wasn't even badmouthing them, you know? And he is _not_ a wizard."  
"Shut up, Ryoji. Go back to Shadow Valley. If you stay away too long from home, you'll die. That's your curse right?" Nazaiya couldn't help but to mention it. After all, this guy _did_ grew up with her.

The smirk on Ryoji's face was starting to fade. Slowly, he took a dagger from inside his cloak that was similar to hers, before aiming at her face. Nazaiya gasped in surprise, but she was ready to dodge it. As if he was concentrating, Ryoji then aimed the dagger at the sleeping Sakura. Before Nazaiya could do anything, he threw it across and hoped that it'll hit the poor princess.

Like an instinct, Nazaiya reached out for the dagger and stopped it right before it hits Sakura's cheek. A drip of blood fell down on the ground from her hand, as she realized that she stopped the dagger by holding its blade. Holding back the pain, she threw the dagger across the ground, making it land right in front of Ryoji's feet. The guy looked at the dagger with uninterested eyes, before staring at her intently.

"You didn't use your powers at all today. Did someone told you not to?" he asked.

Nazaiya hesitated for a second. Somehow, just somehow, she could sense the worry and care in his voice. A part that she had never seen of the guy even a lot of years ago.

"I choose not to." She answered, half-lying.

As if sighing in regret, he turned around with a click of his tongue. Without saying a word, he began to walk away as the fog thickens. He then vanished, as if he was never there.

As he was out of sight, Nazaiya hissed at the pain on her hand. She looked at her bleeding palm, noticing a trace of cut. She jumped a bit when Sakura slightly shifted in her sleep, and Nazaiya was scared if in any case, one of them were to know what happened.

Quickly, she stepped on the little tiny spots of blood on the ground and covered it with dirt. She then went to the dagger, picked it up, before throwing it into the bushes. Realizing that everything was settled, she sighed in relief. The only thing left was her bleeding palm. It looked worse than it felt, but the pain still aches, with blood dripping from where she wounded. _There's going to be a scar for sure_, she thought.

Just then, the lake shone with a powerful light from underneath. She was mesmerized for a second, but she knew that this would mean that the group would come together soon here. If they saw her wound, they may be wondering.

Right at the corner of her eye, she saw some long, plant leaves sticking out from the bushes. She had never seen them, and she doesn't even know if they're good for her, but she thought that it'll do for the time being. She pulled some of the leaves and wrapped it around her hand, even though she couldn't stop the bleeding. It actually worked at covering her wound up with the many leaves she had been pulling off from the bushes, but that'll have to do for now. Footsteps were heard, and Nazaiya took a deep breath, ready for whatever's going to come.

* * *

After Mokona teased Syaoran about Sakura being unconscious when Syaoran just got out of the water, and after he ran quickly just to know that Sakura was just asleep, everyone was gathered around the fire to relax a bit. It was getting dark and cold, but the fire warms them just fine.

Looking at the worried Syaoran, Fai couldn't help but speak;  
"Syaoran, we will all try to find Sakura's feathers, right? If so, you should relax a bit. Don't think about all those unhappy things all the time, otherwise you would not be able to forget even if you want to. You can smile, you can be happy. No one would get mad if you do, Syaoran-kun. Someone will feel happy for you."

Sitting quietly just across Fai, Nazaiya looked at the wizard as he spoke those words. His eyes were lonely when he said it, and she thought that what he said was as if, for her, or at least, for himself. She then looked at Syaoran, who looked like he was reminiscing something before suddenly smiling.

"Syaoran is smiling!" Mokona exclaimed happily, "Mokona is very happy!"  
"Of course! Me too, and Kuro-pin too~" Fai said happily.  
"I have nothing to do with it!" Kurogane looked away.  
Nazaiya let out a little smile. "I'm happy too."  
"Waahh, Mokona saw Nazaiya-chan smiling as well~" the fluffy ball sang.

Just then, Sakura woke up. Quickly standing up, Sakura began to run to the lake, claiming that Syaoran's might be in there. Syaoran managed to stop him, and they both looked at each other, feeling relieved. Everyone then stood up, looking at the two. It was a silly exchange, actually.

"Sakura-chan," Fai said, "I know you're worried because you don't have all of your memory right now. But just try to enjoy this journey. After all, it's not easy for us to be together like this." He then smiled at everyone, satisfied with his own words.

Smiling, Sakura then promised to do her best in the journey. And again, Syaoran looked like he was reminiscing.

"And everyone," Nazaiya suddenly spoke, "I'm sorry… Back in the previous country, I didn't know what got into me. I really don't. It was rude of me…" she looked down with regret. "There are just a lot of things happening since we started this journey and I..."

Suddenly, Nazaiya looked up and saw Sakura coming close to her. Before either of them could say anything, she felt like she was being hugged by the said princess.

"Sakura-san…?" Nazaiya trailed off, a confused look on her face.  
"It's okay, Nazaiya-san." Sakura said, "Mokona told me about it earlier. You don't have to feel bad. As Fai-san said, it's not easy for all of us to be together like this. And after all, we are both girls."

Speechless, Nazaiya slowly wrapped her arms around the princess, appreciating her company. Though she was utterly shocked, she had nothing to say.

After pulling away, Sakura smiled at her, before slowly holding both of Nazaiya's hands.

"Earlier…" Sakura started, "was someone else here?"

Hearing Sakura's words, Nazaiya's eyes widened in surprise. Syaoran, Fai and Kurogane looked at each other, and Mokona made a worried face.

"Someone else…?" Nazaiya asked back, tilting her head.  
"Yes," the princess nodded, "when I was asleep,I felt like there is a presence of someone… a stranger. I was worried, that's why…"

Sakura turned her attention to Nazaiya's injured hand. Nazaiya didn't know how to answer the princess' question for a bit, and retreated her hand with a smile. The others noticed of her hand long ago, but she only gave a stupid little lie of, "I hurt myself from the thorns of some plants," in which, none of them wanted to ask further.

"The important thing is I managed to look after you well for a while, Sakura-san. So don't worry!" Nazaiya assured the younger girl. It's not like she lied or told the truth, she was avoiding answering and that was the best thing she could say. Sakura replied with a smile as well, and she didn't ask anything further.

After some more talking, everyone then was prepared to move into another world. As everyone stood close, Fai lowered his head to whisper at the girl he was looking intently at since just a while ago.

"What _exactly_ happened to your hand, Nazaiya-chan?"  
Gulping, she slowly answered with a whisper. "Something happened, but it was under my control."  
"In control as always, I see." He playfully said.

The blond smiled in approval of the her answer, before standing straight up again. "Looks like Nazaiya-chan is going to be one controlling freak, hyuu~!" He teased, before being hit lightly on the arm by the said girl.

**To be continued… **


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10.**

It was a blur for Nazaiya since the last world, but now she realized that they were all inside some sort of bar or café in a very cold, dark country. Jade Country, as it was called. As the group sat down together at a round table, Fai couldn't help but notice how they stood out by hearing people's whispers. Of course, whoever could guess that it was all because of their distinctive, odd clothes.

As Nazaiya sipped her cup of hot milk, she could understand how worried Syaoran was. With the fact that they had no money of the country, how are they supposed to pay for the drinks and get out of there? But as Nazaiya put her cup down, she saw the signature smile of Fai that he always does on a daily basis.

"It's gonna be alright!" Fai exclaimed, "Right, Sakura-chan?"  
Sakura blinked, confusion written all over her face.

Before long, Sakura was then being sat on another table, where she played cards and won every single round by having the kings of the cards, all of them, in each and every turn. Everyone was amazed, but the other players were of course dissatisfied. They claimed her for cheating, and when they did, Fai defended her.

"If you're not happy about it," Fai pointed to Kurogane, "then you can talk with the guy over there!"  
Kurogane was in a bad mood, because Mokona took his food again. And when the players looked at him, he gave him the 'what-the-hell-do-you-even-want' look, sending shivers down their spines.

Nazaiya on the other hand, couldn't help but feel envious of the princess. With Fai's coat being wrapped around her, she was really lucky and looked really adorable. It is as they say, 'the beloved child of God'. "_If only I'm that loved"_, she thought, before turning her focus towards the man that came towards them with drinks and complimented Sakura.

As they all gathered around the table again, the man began to tell about the legend of The Golden-Haired Princess that resides in the North. The princess received a feather, then her parents died, and after that kids were starting to go missing. She listened intently, but something about it seemed off. Or to be exact, something about that man seemed off. But she wasn't interested to dig in the details, though. Before she knew it, the group has decided; head north to investigate about the legend.

* * *

After paying for everything with the money they won earlier, Nazaiya observed at the whole new look everyone was in, including herself. She had a beautiful gown with ruffles that compliments her looks, which adds a vintage charm on her. Her dull, black cloak was ditched away as she was wearing a much more brighter, thicker cloak to cover herself, similar like the new one Sakura was wearing. She then looked at the guys, who wore a very gentleman-like clothes. The most charming in her eyes was of course, Fai. With his blue eyes and blond hair, the outfit he wore was really breathtaking. For a moment, her heart skipped a beat.

After enough preparations, they all got on their horses. Rejecting Fai's offer of riding a horse together like Sakura did with Syaoran, Nazaiya got on her white, 'majestic' horse and smiled triumphantly. She felt happy to be independent riding a horse, because as far as she remembered, she never did to get on one despite being trained back in her place long years ago.

The group then marched forward to north, though they had little to no clue or directions. As they passed through a black, creepy forest that only had dark branches of trees, Nazaiya couldn't help but shiver at the cold. Still, she couldn't adjust to the surrounding. It felt different. Really different.

"Wah~" Mokona cooed, "the trees curved at just the right angle!"  
"I don't care about that. It's getting cold." Kurogane groaned.  
"Are you alright?" Syaoran asked Sakura, which was replied with a nod.  
"I'm fine. This cloak is very thick." She smiled.  
"Ah, that's right." Fai said, "Sakura-chan's country is in the middle of dessert right?"  
"Yes, but it's very cold at night." The princess answered.  
"What about you, Kuro-tan?" Fai asked again.  
"There's two seasons. Cold in the winter, and hot in the summer." The ninja answered.  
"What about Fai?" Mokona perked his ears up.  
"My place is wayyy colder than here." He smiled.  
"What about Syaoran-kun?" Sakura's turn to ask.  
"I travel a lot, so I'm used to both." Syaoran smiled.  
"And Nazaiya-chan?" Fai looked over at the girl.

The said girl clenched tightly on her cloak, trying to surpass the cold. Realizing that everyone was looking at her, she tried to smile. "I'm not used to the cold at all." Her voice cracked, and Fai had to quickly come beside her, making sure she was okay. He always knew what to do.

"Why didn't you say so earlier, Nazaiya-chan?" he asked, a worried frown on his face.  
"I couldn't even bring myself to speak…" She mumbled, looking as if she was about to freeze right then and there. "It's alright, I'll get used to it soon enough." She strained a smile, before focusing on the path up ahead.

Just then, Mokona spotted a signboard of a village. It wrote 'SPIRIT', as Syaoran read it. For a minute, they praised him for his knowledge. But the next minute, Kurogane called out for everyone to be alert. As they entered the village, they could sense the glares and unwelcoming aura around them, making them know that they weren't welcomed at all.

They ventured through the village, and passed by with their horses. Syaoran decided to ask something at a kid that he saw, but the kid then was dragged back inside her house, while being scolded for going outside and talking to strangers. Syaoran frowned, feeling unaccomplished.

As they neared the center of the village, they were all stopped in their tracks when a number, a huge number of snipers were aimed at them. Their horses neighed, feeling as surprised as their owners were. A leader, or what he appeared to be, stepped out and looked at them suspiciously.

"Who are you?!" he shouted, his voice echoes.  
"We are travelling around the world for old legends and architectures." Syaoran answered calmly.  
"What for?!" the leader shouted again.  
"To write a book." Syaoran answered simply, to everyone's surprise.  
"A book? A kid like you?!" he asked suspiciously, yet again.  
"No, not me." Syaoran pointed towards Fai. "But it's that person."  
"That's right!" Fai exclaimed happily. "That's my assistant! The girl with him is my little sister. And that black guy over there is my servant!"  
Before Kurogane could object, Mokona headbutt-ed him on the back from inside his clothes, allowing him no chance to speak.  
"And what about this other girl?" the leader asked, and a sniper was aimed straight to her face.

Nazaiya was too cold to even speak, and she couldn't care less if the guy shoot her.

"This, is my fiancée. So I ask none of you would ever hurt, much less to even point her with anything, again." Fai said with a smile, as if to claim his ownership towards her. "Don't even come close to her, actually. She's mine."

Nazaiya looked at him with widened eyes, surprised at his words. She smiled a little and blushed slightly, looking down as she mumbled a thanks. Somewhere in her heart, she kinda wished it was true. At that time, she only thought that it was just her heart fluttering about like a schoolgirl in love or something, though she knows that is out of the question.

She heard someone saying stop, stopping the people with the weapons, before inviting everyone to his house. Introducing himself as Kyle Londart, a doctor in the village, Nazaiya couldn't help but feel suspicious again. It might be because how her heart responds with bad intentions, but she couldn't even control her powers to begin with, so she decided to keep it to herself again.

Before long, a guy with a moustache barged in the house, interrupting all of them who were talking in the living room. Calling the team as vagabonds, the doctor then defended them by saying that they all could be their last hope. And as fast as he came, he went outside of the door and stepped furiously, with an old man having to keep up with him. Mr. Glosam and the mayor, as they were introduced.

Though they were still talking, Nazaiya couldn't even remember how she fell asleep right then and there in the living room, not caring whether she missed an info or two.

**To be continued…**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**.

A faint knock on the door was heard, before a motherly female figure made her way inside her daughter's room. She smiled warmly, seeing her princess looking outside the window full of anticipation. The fallen snow last night was pretty on the window, and the little princess touched the window a bit to feel its temperature, before retreating her hand as she shivered slightly.

"Nazaiya, are you ready?" the mother greeted, her warm smile still on her.  
Looking at her mother, the kid's eyes sparkled. "Yes!" she said happily, running to her mom.  
Before long, the two then made their way out of the room, walked through the long hallways, and came to a door that led to the back of the castle.

As the door was opened, little Nazaiya's eyes sparkled with anticipation. The sight before her was amazing, with the snow covering the huge garden, making the pavement white and as if welcoming to be stepped on by her. Snowballs flew in the air, but stopped when she was on the door.

"Ah, our Nazaiya is here! Come and play~!" a boy older than her exclaimed, reaching out to take her hand.  
There was another boy who was a bit younger than the other one, also happy to see their little sister finally came to play. They were welcoming her, as if they had waited long to play with the little princess.

Little Nazaiya quickly stepped outside and ran towards her brothers, smiling from ear to ear as she did so. She was bare handed, and the moment she touched the bit of snow on her brother's gloved hand, she shrieked slightly.

"It's cold!" she shivered slightly, before her brothers laughed at her.  
"Here's your glove, lil sis." They put it on her hands, which she stared at in amazement.  
"Now we can play in the snow?" she asked, tilting her head.  
"Yes, let's!" the boys nodded.

Their mother slowly stepped towards them, smiling blissfully as she watched her children play. She touched her little stomach and let out a happy sigh.  
"You'll be joining your brothers and sister soon, little one…" she whispered.

The maids and butlers and the back were happily watching the family. The only missing person at that time was the King, who was busy with the kingdom affairs and such.

"The princess finally could play with the snow!" a young maid whispered excitedly.  
"Yes, after being told that she can't be in the snow since she was a baby, it was proven that she was fine after all…" A middle-aged maid replied the whisper.  
An old butler who stood nearby frowned. "No… She's not fine…"  
"Eh?" the maids was confused.

Right before their eyes, the little princess suddenly froze when she was trying to throw a snowball to her brother. The snowball fell on her little feet, and her body shook greatly as she collapsed to the ground. Everyone gasped in surprise, before running to their beloved little princess. The queen was so shocked, she collapsed right after. A wave of regret washed through her, as her head was spinning greatly.

The little princess almost lost her consciousness, as she lay on the ground and was surrounded by worried faces. Just before she could close her eyes, she heard a faint whisper; a voice of someone back when she was still so small.

"_The ice is your weakness, __my dear. Never come in contact to it, else your fate will change. And from then on, nothing can stop the fate for spinning its wheel, bringing you to where you will be one day. And you will meet someone - whose fate is also... within your hands to change.__"_

With that, her eyes gave up and her sight was dark. She couldn't remember anything afterwards.

Waking up from her sleep that morning, Nazaiya couldn't help but groan at the extreme coldness. The dream she had was hazy and felt unreal, but she knew that it all happened for real, a long time ago.

A few minutes passed after she blinked a few times to get rid of the sleepiness, she realized that she was sleeping in a room alone, and she felt really cold while sleeping even though she was covered with a thick blanket. Pulling the blanket to cover up her body, she stepped out of bed and went to the window.

For a moment, she gasped in amazement. The sight before her was fascinating. Seeing the village houses, trees and almost everything covered by snow, she couldn't help but smile. She then slowly put her hand on the glass of the window, before pulling it back because of the cold.

She remembered the dream she had just now, as she stared right at the palm of her hand. She could still faintly remember the feeling she had at that time, where she fell in love with the snow. The snow looked harmless, but it ended up being a weakness after all. She clenched her fist, knowing that the dream was just to remind her of her childhood when she was really happy. But that was back then.

Just then, the room door was knocked slightly. She turned around to see who it was, as a tall, blond figure came in with a smile.

"Good morning, Nazaiya-chan." Fai greeted with his friendly voice. "It's time for breakfast."  
She slowly nodded. "Thanks. I'll be ready in a bit."  
"Are you feeling cold?" the blond asked, realizing the girl being adorably wrapped in her thick blanket.  
"Yeah," she glanced out of the window, "but the snow sure is pretty. Very pretty."  
"Yes, it seems so." He replied simply.  
"Isn't your place cold, Fai-san? I would love to visit there, and look at the wonderful snow." She spoke, taking off the blanket and put it back to its place on the bed.  
For a moment, he was quiet. His smile was gone for a second, as well. "But I'm not sure if you can handle how cold it was there, Nazaiya-chan." He mumbled. "I'll wait for you downstairs with the others, then."

With that, Fai closed the door with a smile. Nazaiya stared at the closed door, blinking for a few seconds. Did she say something wrong, perhaps? Because the face that Fai made was… unreadable.

When Nazaiya was ready and joined them for breakfast, she quietly ate as she listened to them still talking about the princess. From the looks of it, looks like the villagers are suspicious of them more than ever. Although it seemed tough, she was sure that the day would be a long, tiring day out in the cold village.

She followed them quietly as they went to the mayor's house to retrieve a history book, going through the woods to find the princess' castle and everything, and going back to the village and back in the place they stay by evening. She wanted to touch the snow with her bare hand, but the cold was overwhelming her. She felt terrible, like a weakling, as if she wasn't meant for the beautiful, pure white snow. She remembered her dream a while back, and probably that was the cause. _The ice is her weakness_.

After dinner, Mokona hopped on Nazaiya's shoulder just before she went to her room.  
"Why is Nazaiya not talking much today?"Mokona asked worriedly.  
"Still not used to the cold?" Kurogane asked.  
She shook her head, before letting Mokona hop off her. "I'm fine."  
"Nazaiya-chan," Fai called out, "is there something wrong?"  
The said girl looked up at the blond, forcing a smile on her lips. "It's okay, don't worry about me. Good night."

With that, she went in her room, leaving the others in confusion in the living room.

The next day, Nazaiya woke up fairly early as the others. Realizing that Sakura was missing, they all gasped in shock. Syaoran was of course, more surprised and worried than anyone else.

"You foreigners, come out!" a loud voice came from outside suddenly.

Being fully alarmed, they heard someone stopping the one who was shouting. Probably the doctor, as they saw the doctor trying to stop the furious leader of the village who was stomping towards the group with his rifle. He pointed the weapon to the group, ready to pull the trigger.

"More children went missing! Seven of them this time!" the furious leader said through the hallway.  
"Please wait!" the doctor defended, "none of them went out last night!"  
"Where is the other girl?" The leader continued.  
"She is missing." Syaoran replied.  
"And you didn't notice that, doctor?!" the leader glared at the doctor.  
"H-How could it be?" The doctor stuttered, looking down with regret.

Nazaiya stared at the doctor, suspecting him for a lot of reasons.

"Maybe the girl kidnapped her!" The leader said again. "Saying she saw the princess and all—"

Syaoran quickly kicked the leader's rifle away, sending it flying in the air. Kurogane caught it just in time, before taking the leader down and aiming the rifle to the leader's head.

"If you dare to use force," Kurogane spat, "you shouldn't complain if you were to die."  
"Hyuu~" Fai cheered, "Kuro-pii is so awesome".  
"Let go of me!" The leader struggled. "Aren't you guys supposedly involved?!"

Fai shrugged with a smile. "You won't believe us even if we say we're not involved, right?"

Nazaiya stood alone in the snow, right in front of the castle. After Dr. Hyde was revealed as the culprit of the kidnappings, everyone went to chase for him in the abandoned castle. Feeling weak for some reason, she decided to wait alone as to not let hold them back. Now she was waiting nervously outside, gripping on her coat and hoped that everything's fine.

As a sudden earthquake erupted on the other side of the lake, the castle looked like it would collapse any minute. Nazaiya held in her breath, waiting for everyone to come out safe from the castle. Suddenly, she saw a lot of people coming out of the castle and walked on the river. They were some of the villagers, children, and most importantly, Fai, Mokona and Kurogane. However, Syaoran and Sakura weren't with them.

As they came near, she ran to them and tugged on Fai's arm, asking where the two were. Sensing her worry, Fai patted her head like she was some kind of an animal. She was fairly shorter than Fai of course, as she was only slightly taller than Syaoran, which made her look like a kid for some.

"It's fine." Fai spoke with a smile, and Nazaiya blinked in confusion. "They'll be fine."

Though it took longer than expected, Syaoran finally came out just in time before the castle completely collapsed, with Sakura in his arms.

Right at that time, Nazaiya saw a glowing figure behind them, as if following Sakura. The glowing figure was Princess Emeraude, and she had a warm smile. Though Nazaiya could see her, the glowing princess only talked to Sakura, telling them that they were being followed by someone. And before Sakura could ask further, she lost her consciousness.

Back at the inn, they were talking in a room. Sakura was sleeping soundly, and anyone who seen her would definitely feel at peace. Nazaiya looked out of the window, seeing the happy faces of families reuniting with their children. The corners of her lips turned into a warm smile. She then finally turned her attention towards the guys who were talking.

"Since Princess Sakura was a child, she could see spirits." Syaoran spoke with a smile. "And even communicate with them."  
"Wahh, can Syaoran-kun do that too?" Fai asked, tilting his head to the side.  
Syaoran shook his head. "No, only the princess and the priest in Clow Country could do that."  
"And Kuro-chan?"  
"Who would want to see those things?" Kurogane answered, matter-of-factly.  
"I don't have this power either." Fai shrugged. "How about Nazaiya-chan?"  
Reluctantly, Nazaiya nodded. "I saw… the princess earlier as well…" she spoke, like she was scared.  
"Eh?" Fai was surprised. "Then why didn't you say so, Nazaiya-chan?"  
"It's not something I am proud of. Besides, the princess won't even look at me." She looked down, as if feeling uncomfortable. She felt like the ghost was very pure, nothing like the ghosts from where she came from.

A hand touched her shoulder, making her look up to the friendly face.  
"That's an amazing ability, isn't it?" Fai asked, directing the question to Mokona on his shoulder.  
"Yes, even Mokona can't see them! Only the black Mokona can see it." It puffed it cheeks in disappointment.  
"The black meat bun?" Kurogane added, remembering about the other Mokona. "So you're useless after all, white meat bun."  
"Hey! Mokona is trying the hardest!" Mokona jumped off Fai and tried to kick Kurogane with its little hands. Enraged, Kurogane took a pillow and flung it across the room. Though he was aiming at Mokona, the pillow's feathers spread across the room, and everyone dodged the little feathers.

Seeing the two, Nazaiya couldn't help but laugh. Fai eyed her from the corner of his eyes, a happy smile on his lips.

As if to run away from the rowdiness, Mokona jumped beside the sleeping Sakura, and notified everyone that she was now awake. Sakura then told them about when she saw the princess, and what the princess had told her.

Knowing that they were being watched by someone, Nazaiya's heart wasn't at ease. At all.

**To be continued…**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12.**

Landing in a new world and being cramped up together out of nowhere, Kurogane couldn't help but groan. As he sat up, he grabbed the nearby Mokona with his right hand and glared at it, his eyes burning with anger.

"You white manjuu bun! Can't you land us at a-" He roared, before stopping when Mokona pointed its little paw somewhere.  
"Look!" Mokona squeaked.

Even Syaoran who was helping Sakura standing up, looked at where Mokona was pointing at, before a blush crept upon their faces and they slowly turned their head away. The sight before them was… interesting. The other two members of the group had landed not far from them, but were still in a distance.

Fai was on top of Nazaiya, hovering over her as he used his arms for support, with Nazaiya lying down on the soft grass, her eyes looking directly at the blond. Their faces were inches away from one another, their eyes bore into each other's as if they had a meaning to it. Her plain, pink eyes were no match for his beautiful, blue eyes.

Nazaiya felt her heart beating rapidly as the colour of crimson crept up to both of her cheeks. Fai's lips turned into a sweet smile at the sight, his breath ghosting her neck with every moment that passed by. Neither of them moved an inch, as if they didn't want the moment to end. Fai looked like he doesn't want to move, while Nazaiya just couldn't really do anything. At least, that's what she pretended to.

A sudden throat-clearing from someone brought Nazaiya back to her senses, and she began to lightly push Fai away. The blond weakly rolled over to the side and playfully chuckled, as if he had a lot of fun. She then began to stand up and dusted off her clothes, strengthening them for no reason. She tried to calm down, glancing at Fai who wouldn't budge. He stayed lying down on the grass as a gentle breeze went pass them.

"I hope I didn't interrupt your private moment, young ones." A male said, giving a gentle smile.

Hearing that voice, Nazaiya felt slightly surprised. She looked up to see a middle-aged man, wearing a hunter's outfit. He had a sniper hanging around his shoulder, and he looked like someone of a high rank. She knew that he llooked very familiar, like he was exactly from her world, as she tried to recall her memories. When the realization dawned upon her, Nazaiya couldn't say anything as she stood there with her eyes wide.

"What are you doing here?" The man said. "This is a shooting training field, and my students are going to train here in a few minutes."  
"We're sorry, but we are not from around here." Syaoran spoke politely, bowing his head as he apologized. "We are looking for something."  
The man was quiet for a few seconds, before smiling again. "So, you all are finally here!"

The man's words put all of them on guard. Fai was now walking towards the man, his friendly smile plastered on his face. Even Nazaiya didn't notice when he stood up.

"You knew that we were coming?" Fai asked.  
The man nodded, "Well then, I shall let some of my students take you to the village. To meet my wife, that is. She knows a lot."

The man then called out for two of his students, who suddenly came running. After hearing their instructions, they nodded before motioning the team to follow them. Though they were full of questions, they decided to follow and started walking out of the vast, green field.

Nazaiya slowly walked behind them, but just as she passed by the man, she stopped and stared at him.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.  
"Your name…" she managed to speak. "Is your family name Kudoki, by any chance?"

Nazaiya had hoped that her instinct was wrong. She wanted it to be wrong, so that she wouldn't feel anything. Her heart was already thrown to the wind just now, and she doesn't need more emotions whatsoever. However, the reality in front of her crushed her hopes.

"I am. My name is-"  
"Ah, no, that's okay," She stopped him from continuing. "Maybe I was just mistaken. Sorry!" she bowed deeply, before turning away and caught up to the group.

To Fai, at least. She pulled the sleeve of his coat, making him look down at her quietly.

"What's wrong, Nazaiya-chan?" he titled his head in confusion. It was rare for her to suddenly come up to him like that.

Nazaiya only shook her head in reply, refusing to answer his question. She gripped on Fai's coat sleeve tightly as she walked, as if she could collapse if she ever let go. The memory where Fai was on top of her earlier wasn't really in her mind right now. She was thinking of something else. Or rather, hoping for something.

As they entered through the village entrance, Nazaiya looked up and scanned her surroundings. It was a friendly atmosphere, and they found themselves walking through a market. Nobody spoke a word, and Nazaiya finally pulled her hand away from tugging at the blond's sleeve and looked forward, as if anticipating her destination.

With every step they took, she felt herself walking faster. After walking through the crowded place, they found themselves standing in front of a building. Though not really huge, it really looked like an inn. One of the students, who were always quiet, finally turned around to talk.

"This is Kudoki-sensei's inn. He only asked us to bring you here, and to tell you that his wife is waiting at the fortune-teller's hut. We don't know if you may stay here or not, so ask her wife about that." From the ways of it, he doesn't sound like he wants to meet the man's wife.  
"And the fortune-teller's hut isn't really a hut, it's located somewhere in the market. I'm sorry, but you have to find her on your own." The other one spoke, shrugging.  
"Thank you very much, then." Syaoran bowed, and they nodded.

The two students then walked off, not caring about them.

"Since she's a fortune-teller, she must know a lot." Fai said happily."So what's your decision, Syaoran-kun?"  
"Let's find her." He answered, with determination in his eyes.

Hearing Syaoran's words, Nazaiya was the first one to turn around and was ready to start walking away.

They began to walk in the market, pushing their way through. Like something was calling out for her, Nazaiya quickly turn at a corner nearby a fruit vendor, walking at a fast pace. Surprised, the others tried to follow her from behind, trying to keep up with her. Before long, they found themselves in front of a hidden row of shops. One of the shops had a sign read as 'Crystal Hut', as Syaoran read it, and they immediately knew what place it was.

Nazaiya was eager to get in the place, but her heart was thumping fast in her chest. She had wanted to make sure of something, and yet she doesn't want to know the answer. Her hands were trembling slightly, but she hid it well in her cloak. As if sensing her nervousness, Fai stood beside her and touched her shoulder slightly, making her look up at him.

He didn't say anything, but his smile to her was more than words. With only that smile, Nazaiya felt like her heart was at ease. She found herself smiling back, before looking down.

And with their heads up, Nazaiya was the first one to step in the so-called hut. When she got inside, she saw a lot of potions and herbs in jars neatly arranged on rows of shelves. There was a round table with some chairs somewhere in the huge shop, which she assumed to be a waiting place. She stepped in further, as she realized someone's back by the counter. It was a lady, no doubt. And Nazaiya's legs froze.

The others followed closely behind her, and Syaoran was the first one to bravely make his way to the counter. He glanced at the others, before turning to call out for the lady.

"Excuse me." He said politely, and the lady turned around.

She had wavy hair, just past her shoulders. She looked a bit younger than the man at the field earlier, but she was no doubt a mother. There was a little diamond right in the middle of her forehead, as some sort of a symbol, and she was wearing the country's traditional clothes, with a shawl wrapped around her shoulders. With a smile, she greeted them all in a friendly, motherly manner.

"My, my. So you all have finally arrived." She said, welcoming them all.  
"You knew about us?" Syaoran asked in a serious tone.

The lady smiled in reply, before her eyes gazed at the girl in a black cloak, standing still not far from the counter. Her head hung low.

Nazaiya slowly lifted her head, her eyes meeting with the eyes of the lady.

"Hello there, sweetie." The lady greeted, still with her motherly smile.  
"… Mother?" Nazaiya breathed out, as a wave of emotions crash through inside her.

* * *

It didn't take long, before the lady asked them to go back to the inn. She pitied Sakura, as she looked exhausted. But most of all, she pitied Nazaiya, because after seeing the lady, she had an emotional shock and she couldn't speak. The lady closed her shop for the day, and offered to walk with them to the inn using the backdoor, where she claimed to be a nearer road home.

They walked slowly, as Sakura was forcing herself to walk despite being extremely tired and Nazaiya walking behind, her face unreadable to many. Somehow, Fai had hoped that the girl wouldn't get into her state where she gets confused, like when they were fighting the demon back in Koryo.

"All of you must be tired," the lady spoke. "Excuse my husband, he shouldn't have asked all of you to see me first. You all should rest."  
"It's really fine." Syaoran smiled. "More importantly... are you a dream-seer?"  
The lady replied with another smile. "I am a fortune-teller, and my name is Julia. We have no dream-seer here as other dimensions, I suppose."  
"Wahh, you know about other dimensions as well?" Fai said in his usual happy voice.  
"Yes. The first person who contacted me from the other world was her mother." Julia glanced at Nazaiya for a moment. "And her mother knew this time would come."  
"So you resemble her mother?" Kurogane asked.  
"Well, I _am_ her mother in the other world. And as far as I know, she don't have many good memories of her mother…" she trailed off, looking into a distance.  
"W-Why is that?" Sakura breathed out.  
Julia hesitated for a moment, before lowering her voice. "She was born as a human, but raised as a demon."

Though the lady's voice was low, it didn't escape Nazaiya's ears. She stopped in her tracks, before looking up at the people in front of her. Her hood fell to the back, revealing her round, fierce eyes.

"Then… What am I exactly?" Nazaiya voiced out, her voice shaky. Her hands were trembling, as she looked at the surprised people in front of her. Julia had a worried face on, a tinge of guilt pulling on her heartstrings. "Things are happening to me and I don't have a clue of what's going on. And now, this? How ridiculous." She huffed.

Nazaiya turned around, her back to her companions. "I'm going. Don't find me unless it gets dark." With that, she made her way through the quiet streets. The sun was about to set, and her figure disappeared by the shadows of the buildings.

"So the heart is now inside of her..." Julia muttered, which didn't go unheard by Fai.

**To be continued…**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13.**

Night has fallen, as the moon beamed upon the small village. It looked quiet, almost scary, that a noisy village full of people selling in the market earlier had become a dark, hidden space of silence. Only the howling of wolves from afar filled the silence outside, almost giving a chill to the villagers inside their houses.

Fai gazed out of the window, his eyes fixed on one place. His eyes were full of worry, and his smile was almost not there that evening. He then let out a small, inaudible sigh.

"If you're so worried, then go out to find her." a harsh, almost angry voice greeted the mage from behind.

Fai turned his eyes away from the window, only to meet a frowning Kurogane standing not far from him. He and Syaoran had just entered the room, both looking at the blonde mage. Fai smiled, as a greeting for the two.

"Has the princess slept?" Fai asked, clearly changing the subject.  
"Yes," Syaoran nodded, "she was fast asleep as soon as she lied down."  
"Sakura looked tired!" Mokona said, jumping from Syaoran to the bed in the room.  
"That's good then." The mage grinned. "Now, shouldn't we rest as well?"  
"But Nazaiya isn't coming back…" Mokona said, putting a paw on its small mouth.

For a moment, Fai looked like he was frowning with worry. But just a moment after, they heard a loud commotion from outside. The inn echoed with little screams of females, and the sound of worried people. They quickly ran out of their room, and their eyes were full of shock seeing the sight before them.

Nazaiya climbed up the stairs to the hallway, her face reflected her exhaustion. Blood was dripping from the corner of her lips, and her hood was covering the upper part of her face. Her feet were wobbling as she walked, and her black cloak, though dull and dark, was soaked with wet blood. Blood that didn't come from someone else; blood that was from her wounds. And on her left hand, which she held loosely, was Sakura's feather, glowing perfectly on her bare hand.

Before anyone could move, Fai quickly ran up to her, catching Nazaiya in his arms as she collapsed, the hood hung off her head. She looked up tiredly, her pink orbs looked like they had been wet with tears. With trembling hands, she pushed the feather towards Fai, which he looked at it solemnly.

"I've used my powers again…" her voice shook as she speaks, as if pleading to be forgiven.

Ignoring the feather as he took it in one hand, Fai pulled Nazaiya closer to him and she was wrapped in his warm embrace, her ears inches away from his lips.

With a soft sigh, Fai whispered in her ear;  
"Why can't you stop making me worry…"

Nazaiya couldn't quite hear what Fai had spoken, as her eyes felt heavy and she fell into a deep slumber.

* * *

Morning came, but everyone's face was grim. Though they were relieved that Nazaiya was fine, as the medical examiners had said about her, she was still in a deep sleep. Despite the feather returning back to the princess, they knew that she must had faced something awful, something strong, in order to get the feather.

They were all in the room Sakura was sleeping in, as Nazaiya was in the other room. They weren't allowed to visit the other girl as Julia told them not to, and they had to obey it. Just then, the door of the room was opened, and everyone looked at the motherly figure that had now closed the door. Her face was etched with worry, like a mother had towards a child.

"The feather," Julia spoke, "it was held by a leader of a large bandit group in this huge village. It was very brave of her to go and retrieve it alone, but doing it just before the night ends…. That was absurd. She put herself in danger, and above all, nobody went to look for her."

Everyone sensed how mad she was, but she was speaking calmly and rationally. A tinge of guilt washed through Fai's face, but he looked up with a forced smile.

"I was to be blamed, as I was late in looking for her last night." His voice was soft, full of regret.

Julia glanced tiredly at the mage, before breathing as if to calm herself down.

"The name of the leader is Ryoji, and he would be responsible for all of this. I will not need any of you to avenge her, so please leave him in our hands." Julia spoke, preparing to leave.  
"Ryoji….?" A soft voice filled the silence, and they all turned towards the princess on the bed. She was awake, but her eyes were sleepy.  
"Princess…" Syaoran muttered, looking at her.  
"The other day at the lake," she said in a low voice, "when I was asleep… The other presence I felt, was someone with the name Ryoji. Nazaiya-san called out to him once or twice."

With that sentence alone, Fai's eyes met with Kurogane and Syaoran, probably thinking of the same thing.

"Sakura-chan, please rest. Maybe it was just a coincidence, that this Ryoji has the same name as that Ryoji." Fai ensured her, wanting her to go to sleep. Though they all know, there are no such things as coincidences in the world.

"Syaoran-kun," she gripped the Syaoran's sleeves gently. "Can you tell me what happened?"  
Syaoran smiled and clasped her hand in his. "I will after you have rest enough, princess."

Julia turned towards the door, her hand at the doorknob as she spoke.

"Fai-san, I need to talk to you outside."

She then opened the door and got out of the room, walking through the hallway with a tired expression.

Fai glanced at the others momentarily, before excusing himself with a smile.

As the mage closed the door, Kurogane looked over at Syaoran.

"That mage knows things that we don't." He said calmly, and Syaoran nodded in agreement.

Fai followed the lady to a room, where it looks like a study room. Oddly, there were no books around. Only potions and a set of table in the small room, but Fai had nothing to complain about. Julia gestured the mage to sit and she did, and Fai sat with a smile.

Before Fai could say anything, Julia had beaten him to it.

"First of all, tell me what you know." Her tone was serious, as she looked straight into his eyes.

Fai's smile was gone for a second, before it was back on his face as he looked at the fortune-teller.

"I wonder what I should tell you…" he trailed off, as if thinking.  
"About her heart." She replied strictly.  
He narrowed his eyes, as if facing a threat. "Her heart was not real."  
"Precisely." Julia said, as if satisfied. "It was an artificial heart, made from a blank piece of silk that had nothing on it. Only lies and confusion. She was unstable, she couldn't think straight. I'm sure she had shown some signs along the journey."

Fai was quiet, his expression was unreadable. It was uncharacteristic of him, but it's not like Julia had known him well enough.

"She would break." Julia continued. "She cried, and there are hatred, anger and sadness in her mind. She would smile, but her eyes are full of confusion with the things in front of her. In the end, she knows almost nothing of herself. So, _do you_?"  
"Eh?" Fai tilted his head, caught off guard.  
"Do you know about her more than she does herself?" she asked.  
"But you know just as much too, Julia-san."  
"Not quite. I only know the things her mother had told me, but you knew beyond that. You knew what would happen, and what could happen."

Again, Fai disregard the statement with a smile. Sighing, Julia asked him to leave with a polite voice. He slowly stood up and bowed, before heading to the door. Just as he was about to step out, Julia called out for him.

"If you do not wish to tell me, then I can only ask you for one thing." Julia spoke, her eyes are giving up on being stern.  
"What could it be?"  
"Please protect her. When the day comes when she would break, be there for her to bind her back in place. When she reaches out, take her hand. When she falls, pull her up. When she stumbles into something rough, save her."

Fai glanced back, his eyes shone with deep secrets.

"That was what I'm planning to do." As he said that, he stepped out and closed the door behind him, making his way to Nazaiya's room.

Julia's tears began to fall, her chest tightened with worry. "I could only do this much for you, child…"

**To be continued…**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14.**

The sun shone down upon the quiet room, as a soft whistling of wind went in through the window. Nazaiya looked down on the cup of tea she was holding with both her bandaged hands, her strands of hair swayed by the gentle breeze. The bed she was in was comfortable, and it was really nice when she gets to sit up on it after waking up not long ago. She wasn't that badly wounded this time, and she knew that she had rested enough for the time being.

Julia was in the room, sitting down on a chair beside the bed after arranging some flowers on a nearby vase. She looked up at the young female, feeling relieved that she had already woken up from her deep slumber. It was like looking at her own child; at least that's what Julia thought. None of them spoke a word.

"Julia-san…" Nazaiya muttered, finally breaking the silence with a voice so faint.  
"Yes, my child?" Julia smiled.  
"You see…" Nazaiya started, "when I met with that Ryoji the other day…. He said something...""  
"I'm listening, dear."  
"He said… 'I see how determined you were to have this feather, but is this really what you want when you began your journey? I'm sure there is something else, far more important for you that you're looking for right now', and at that time, I remembered." She paused, "I am supposed to find something else, but these people I met, I'm travelling with… I want to help them, but they're all going to be in danger because of me. I wasn't supposed to do this, but why am I...?"  
Julia stared into the young female's eyes, "It is okay, Nazaiya. You don't have to worry. Everything will be okay, so you have to believe. Do what you think is right. And in your path, there will be twists and turns, but most of all, remember, you are important."

For a moment, Nazaiya was frozen. A slight emotion flickered into her eyes, before she looked down again.

"The words you spoke were exactly what my mother told me before…" she mumbled.  
Julia smiled. "Besides, the people you are travelling all wanted to protect you. Don't you feel like protecting them as well? Not to mention the blond mage. Isn't he interested in you?"

Nazaiya looked up again, seeing Julia now with a playful smile. For some reason, Nazaiya slightly blushed.

"W-Well, he _did_ try to protect me at times…." She trailed off.  
"At times? Are you sure that it's not all the time?"

Nazaiya was at a loss to answer that. She remembered the times when she collapsed back in Chunhyan's place, and in the castle of the evil Ryanban, even when they were in the Republic of Hanshin. And recently, as she remembered, Fai was the one who caught her when she came back from the fight with Ryoji. It was all that blond's doing, that she was able to feel ease, somehow. Another blush crept upon her face as she remembered how Fai had fallen on top of her when they just came into this world. Her heart started to beat furiously, feeling nervous.

Just then, the door opened. Nazaiya looked up towards the entrance, and she smiled at the sight of the people without her realization. Kurogane, Fai, Syaoran, Mokona and even Sakura were there. As they entered the room, Julia stood up and began to excuse herself, immediately making her way towards the door without looking back.

Sakura quickly went to stand beside the bed, and after Nazaiya put her cup away, Sakura immediately took Nazaiya's hand in hers.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked, frowning with worry.  
Nazaiya gave her a smile. "I'm fine now."  
"You're sure, Nazaiya-chan?" Fai asked, tilting his head with a happy smile.  
Nazaiya glanced at him, and simply nodded before turning towards the others.

"Uhm, this time… tonight. Can we start going to another dimension?" Nazaiya spoke, receiving a quite surprised reaction.  
"Since you took the trouble for the Princess's feather all on your own, we have no objections on it." Syaoran nodded, "However, are you really okay?"  
"Don't worry, these are just minor wounds." she gave them an assuring smile.

"What are you hurrying for, Nazaiya-chan?" Fai asked, his smile had some kind of force in it. His question was answered with yet another smile.

Mokona hopped on to the bed from Syaoran's shoulder, looking up at Nazaiya with hopeful eyes.

"Is Nazaiya still searching for whatever you told us before? What is it, exactly?" the question was so innocent, coming from the fluffy ball's mouth.  
Nazaiya looked at Mokona, her heart softened seeing the little animal. "Perhaps… someone who held my heart."  
"Does it mean someone Nazaiya used to love? Someone who held your heart means someone you fell in love with, right? Yuuko told me so!"  
"I don't know. Maybe?" she answered.  
"Don't worry, Nazaiya-san." Sakura gave the other girl a bright, happy smile. "We're friends now, right? I'm sure we'll all find who you seek in no time!

"_Friends…?_" she mumbled, really slowly, nobody could hear.

That very night, the group was ready to depart. Julia was quite shocked of their decision, but decided to wish them the best nonetheless. In exchange, she was to be allowed to hug Nazaiya, which, wasn't a big thing at all.

Before leaving, as they stood together, Nazaiya tugged at Fai's sleeve, making the blond smile happily as he lowered his head to listen to what she has to say. Their face were close, and Nazaiya could feel that her heart skips a beat. Pushing the feelings aside, she steadily whispered to the blond.

"Thank you so much Fai, for helping me... Always. I wish I can help you too, somehow. At least, maybe to lift off any burden you're carrying on your shoulders behind that smile?"

Those words struck Fai for a moment as his eyes widened a bit. But quickly, he smiled, rather bitterly. Never had he thought the girl would be so sharp, as he looked down at her with unreadable eyes. Her pink orbs were twinkling, as if excited and determined.

Fai let out a bitter laugh, and tilted his head with a smile. "Nazaiya-chan, you don't have to worry about me. Everything is fine. You should just... Mind your own business, you know. Really."

Although his tone was light, Nazaiya felt like her heart was pierced with arrows of rejection. She wanted to say something in exchange, but she had none. She didn't know she would be bluntly refused, so she nodded albeit with disappointment, before walking to Sakura as if their exchange never happened.

Being left, Fai stood up straight again and went to stand beside Kurogane, smiling widely as he playfully slapped the ninja's arm. Kurogane scowled furiously, about to get mad at the mage when he saw the difference in his eyes. It was as if he slapped the ninja's arm to make him feel better. Kurogane glanced at Nazaiya, trying to grasp the situation. He observed a bit further, before frowning at Fai.

"Why did you even do that for?!" he finally scolded, earning a laughter from Mokona who suddenly jumped from Syaoran's to Fai's shoulder.  
"Well, it's time to go, everyone!" Fai exclaimed happily. Nobody would know what's on his mind, or even in his heart, seeing the happy smile he puts on at that time.

Mokona happily jumped, growing out its wings. As they were pulled in into another dimension, Nazaiya waved off the person that had the resemblance of her mom, muttering a little "Thank you."

As they were gone, Julia turned to look at a dark corner and waited. Before long, a figure came out, a proud smirk on his face.

"I wasn't expecting you to hurt her, Ryoji." Julia frowned at the demon.  
"Well," he shrugged, "I just wanted to know how strong she have gotten. I had some scratches myself, but she's not that strong after all."  
"…Shouldn't you be going, now? This is not your world, in the first place."  
"Ah, yes of course. I just came to thank you for your help on giving them a place to stay." Ryoji bowed, "Now I'm off to the next world she's going to."  
"I helped her because of her mother and _not_ for you. Why are you following her? Going to the exact same worlds she went to must have cost you a lot at the Dimensional Witch's place." Julia asked, rather confused.  
Ryoji's gazed at the ground, his eyes reflected regret. "To actually retrieve all the times that I wasted, this is a must. This is as much as I can do, anyways."  
"If it is for a good intention, I wish you luck on your journey. But if it is otherwise, I will curse you myself."

Ryoji laughed at Julia's challenge, not respecting the older woman. Though he had to admit, she looked really similar to Nazaiya's mother in a lot of ways. But alas, he's not interested at all. He turned with a smirk, before disappearing into the darkness.

**To be continued…**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15.**

Just as they sat foot on the new dimension, a group of beautiful females in maid uniforms surrounded them, putting them on guard. They appeared harmless, nonetheless. Turns out, the females were welcoming them to the country. It was Outo Country, as they claimed it to be. With their friendly gestures and welcoming wishes, the females brought them all to the City Hall to register.

Nazaiya followed Fai and Syaoran to the counter while Kurogane and Sakura sat at the couch on the waiting area. Somehow, her head was beginning to pound. She frowned as she endured the pain, not wanting to let the others notice. Maybe it's just a side-effect of her using her powers too much back then. She had thought of that, and while she was at it, Fai was actually talking to her. Snapping herself back to reality, she blinked in confusion at the blond.

"W-What is it again, Fai-san?" she was using formalities again, and Fai winced a little at it.  
"I was asking you, what would you want to put in as your name, Nazaiya-chan?" he tilted his head with a pen between his fingers, turning back to his usual self.  
"N-Name? What for?" Nazaiya asked in reply.

She still felt a little awkward talking to him, because every time she remembered how he rejected her help, she was overcome with waves of emotion. Disappointment, rejection, sadness, angst...

"For this country, we need to register names." Syaoran spoke. "But we're using pseudonyms since we don't know about this country's letters and all. However Fai-san wrote our names already…."

Syaoran's expression changed, and Nazaiya took a peek at the paper on the counter which Fai had written on. Or rather, the one he had drawn on. Her eyes widen a bit, surprised, before she let out a soft laugh.

"This looks fun," Nazaiya smiled, trying to cheer herself up. "Draw me something that suits me then, Fai-san."

Fai gazed at the girl, a few minutes or so, before starting to scribble something. Without showing the paper to her, Fai gave it to the clerk on the counter. Nazaiya wanted to ask, but her head pounded yet again. As she blinked to regain her composure, she saw Fai leaning in fairly close to the clerk, asking the clerk about stuff. For some reason, her heart was shaken a bit. A few seconds later, Fai called out to her again.

"Nazaiya-chan, can you go get Kuro-pii here? We need the clothes to be traded for money." Fai pointed at Kurogane, who seemed to be annoyed by Mokona's constant jumping.  
"Oh, sure." As she said that, she turned around to walk.

Just then, Nazaiya felt like her head could burst because of the sudden throb. She staggered, grabbing the lines of the counter in order to stand properly. Seeing this, Fai reached his hands out immediately to hold her, before stopping midway. She was so near, and yet he couldn't reach her. He wanted to, but he just… couldn't. Slowly, he retreated his hand and told Nazaiya to not move.

"Kuro-woofy, bring the bag over here!" Fai shouted in his happy voice, across the hall.  
"Don't call me by a dog's name!" Kurogane furiously stomped towards them with a bag in his hand.

After that, Nazaiya frowned as she held in the pain. She told them that she was fine, and proceeded to follow them to where they were going to stay. As usual, she couldn't make sense of what any of them were saying. Her heartbeat was fast now and then. She was unclear as of why, but maybe it was because of the darkness of this place? But as far as she can see it, everything was just fine at this country… or so she thought. She shifted uncomfortably at the couch she was sitting, looking at Sakura as she slept, once they arrived at where they were staying.

Just then, Nazaiya felt a surge of darkness marching close to her. All of a sudden, the huge window on the hall of their place broke into pieces, revealing a black, huge monster which was about to come in.

"Wow! We just moved in and there's already an unexpected guest~" Fai sang, rather happily. "We didn't invite you here, you know!"

Without hesitation, Syaoran and Kurogane jumped through and fought the monster, leaving Fai cheering for them. The monster was huge, and its eyes were red. For a moment, it glanced at Nazaiya. It then crawled across the hall to reach her, its eyes showed obedience. Frozen, Nazaiya's eyes widened as she looked into the monster's huge eyes. And with that opening, Syaoran landed a blow on the monster, crushing him into pieces before it dissolves into thin air. Nazaiya blinked, coming back to her senses.

She wasn't able to speak as she reached her limit, passing out on the couch next to Sakura.

* * *

Nazaiya's eyes fluttered open, the sound of nothingness feeling the air. As she realized that it was already morning, she began to sit up from lying down on the floor, her headache gone. She realized that her blanket was actually Fai's coat, and she could smell his scent on it. Blushing a little, she looked up to find Kurogane sitting on a corner not far from her. Sakura was sleeping on the couch accompanied by Mokona, but the other two were nowhere to be found.

"Good morning, Kurogane." Nazaiya smiled. "Where's Syaoran and Fai?"  
"They went out. To talk about that thing yesterday." He simply replied, looking rather bored.  
"I see…"

Nazaiya stood up and took Fai's coat in her hands before sitting next to Kurogane. Now that she thought about it, there aren't many chances where she spoke with the ninja, nor had they been left alone to talk before. Nazaiya thought that Kurogane, or at least herself, could use some company. Hugging Fai's coat close and appreciating its warmth, Nazaiya was about to speak when Kurogane beat her to it.

"That beast yesterday. Does it has anything to do with you?"  
Surprised, Nazaiya looked up at the ninja questionably. "You mean, that monster? No, of course not."

Kurogane's eyes bore into her, and that's when Nazaiya realized that he had such striking, attractive pair of crimson red eyes.

"To tell you the truth, I have the power to control evil-natured things _only_ when I will it to..." She looked at Fai's coat, playing with the soft, furry linings. "But now, I only know that I get dizzy, or my heart feels hurt when there's an extreme darkness. It happens back in the few dimensions, so I'm sure you have noticed. I collapsed often too, whenever I use my powers. But last night was something else. I did nothing, yet that beast…"  
"It was waiting for your orders."

Nazaiya's eyes perked up.

"You noticed…?" she asked softly.  
"You can control such things, heh?" he smirked.  
"Well, last time it was at Chunhyan's place when I kinda called out for the tornado." She shrugged.  
"Not gonna use such powers again?"  
"I… don't know. Fai-san had told me not to use it—"  
"I'm not going to tell you what to do, but if you do or say something that hurts others, that would be unfair to the people who try so hard to protect you."

At Kurogane's words, Nazaiya fell into silence.

Just then, Fai and Syaoran got back. The atmosphere suddenly turned happier, but Nazaiya's mind was wandering somewhere else. She stared at the floor, her hands still on Fai's coat.

"Aww, Kuro-woofy doesn't care about me anymore! Nazaiya-chan~ I'm hurt~" Fai's voice brought her back, and she looked up rather terrified to be suddenly called out.  
"W-what?" she stuttered.

Just then she realized that she was hugging Fai's coat. Another blush crept upon her face as she shoved the coat at the blond mage.

"Sorry I held it so long. T-Thank you for lending it to me!"

Seeing Nazaiya so flustered, Fai couldn't help but smile. He took the coat and put it away, before clasping her hands into his.

"No problem. Are you fully awake now? Feeling fine?" Fai asked, tilting his head happily.  
Nazaiya nodded in reply, trying to reply him with a smile. He slowly released her hands, before turning at the others.

Nazaiya looked up at Fai's side profile. She wondered how the mage could be so cheerful and acted like nothing happened, when she was pretty sure they had some sort of confusion and awkwardness between them. It was like he closed the door for anybody else to get near him, and yet she still... w_anted_ to be close to him.

Syaoran then proceeded to tell Kurogane about the 'kiji', and how they could be kiji hunters to get some money. And when Kurogane suddenly claimed that Syaoran's right eye couldn't see, a wave of surprise washed over the whole group. However, determined, Syaoran bowed and ask Kurogane to let him still fight.

Nazaiya observed, as Syaoran glanced up at the princess' sleeping figure, his eyes full of resolution. For a moment, Nazaiya was jealous. Not because of the love, but because how strong Syaoran was in his determination. And yet there she was, a girl who's heart was unstable, full of confusion and could eventually fall into anything she encounters. Silently, she sighed.

**To be continued…**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16.**

The morning was busy, with everyone putting up the decorations for the café. At least, that's what Fai told Nazaiya when she woke up first thing in the morning, with the scent of tea and pastries filling the air. Not long after, Sakura woke up as well. The two females then were told to change clothes into something 'proper' for the café.

After a while, Sakura got out of her room. She was a bit embarrassed of how she looks, so when Syaoran looked at her, she looked down and asked;

"Is this… strange?" her voice was almost a whisper.

Syaoran quickly shook his head, a taint of blush across his cheeks. He couldn't describe how adorable she was, wearing a maid-waitress dress that suits her so much. He wanted to say something, but Fai beat him to it.

"Hyuuu~ Sakura-chan looks so cute! A real cute waitress!" he sang, with Mokona agreeing beside him.

Sakura blushed at the compliment, but then started to think about the other female who was told to change clothes. How does she look? Is she happy with what she's wearing? Those thoughts came creeping in while she looked around, when suddenly she saw someone at the end of the counter of the café, bringing a rather huge round plate over to a nearby table.

Nazaiya was wearing a slightly different outfit than hers, and yet, she looked pretty. Her black, silky hair was neatly resting on her right shoulder, forming a little twirl. A little, pink ribbon hairpin was clipping her soft bangs to the side, revealing the full of her fair, white skin. Her eyelashes were long, complimenting her smooth, pink eyes. Her lips were a tint of rosy pink, with her cheeks a bit red with blush at the attention people are suddenly giving her. As she gracefully put the huge plate down, she looked up and smiled at the girl.

Sakura stood in awe, feeling like she was nothing compared to the older girl. She smiled shyly, feeling down all of a sudden.

"Sakura-san, you look so adorable!" Nazaiya complimented with a smile.  
"But Nazaiya-san looked…. Better." Sakura murmured softly.  
"I look better?" she asked, before coming to the little girl and whispered to her. "Well, I wasn't the one who made Syaoran blush, you know."

With a wink, Nazaiya left the blushing Sakura and went to the table again. Sakura was puzzled; one time Nazaiya could be so quiet, but then she could be teasing and happy too. As she looked up, she saw Fai and Nazaiya standing together. For some reason, the two looked perfect; with Fai in butler-like waiter clothes, and Nazaiya who was in a dress that looked like a maid. They look like they fit each other so much. She shook her head, pushing all of her thoughts away. She should concentrate, in order to help the others.

Mokona hoped on the table, and before long, a few blocks of deserts came out of its mouth and were served onto the huge plate.

"These are from Yuuko!" Mokona exclaimed, "They're called chocolate custards, and they have chocolate inside them! You should eat it while it's hot~"  
"Good timing, everyone! Let's eat~" Fai then began to serve tea for everyone.  
Kurogane looked away, "I don't want it."

As Kurogane was sitting with a frown, Fai quickly shoved a bit of the sweet dessert into Kurogane's mouth. It was an awkward silence, before Fai was running for his life with a smile on his face. Kurogane was forced to eat it, and he was chasing the wizard all around with raging anger, shouting "What the hell are you doing?!" as he did so.

"Kurogane ate it! I must tell Yuuko!" Mokona shouted, hopping on Fai's shoulder as he ran.

Ignoring the two (or three), Nazaiya took a seat at the table as she looked up at Syaoran and Sakura who were eating together silently, somehow fidgeting. With a shrug, she took a fork and minutes later, she was eating one of the chocolate custards.

Nazaiya's eyes widened at the sweetness, feeling the taste of the chocolate melting in her mouth. She had never tasted anything so sweet, so tasty and as appetizing. Her eyes were sparkling, showcasting her happiness. With flushed cheeks, she grinned in happiness. And when Fai glanced at her while running, he couldn't help but smile as well.

* * *

That evening, the café was shook with a roaring Kurogane barging through the café entrance. It was a loud commotion, since Kurogane was mad at Fai for putting his name as 'Big Doggie'. As for Syaoran, his name was 'Little Doggie', and Sakura, 'Little Kitty'. Fai, being the 'Big Kitty', was really proud of his name inventions even though Kurogane was obviously boiling with anger at him.

Nazaiya had just come from the back of the café when she heard the loud commotion and saw Kurogane chasing Fai yet again. When she asked Sakura what happened, the girl just pointed to the animals drawn by the wizard. Frowning, Nazaiya got curious as well. Before she could ask, the café entrance was greeted with a pair of kiji hunters, accompanied by their dog.

Fai served the two some chocolate shortcakes, and Nazaiya couldn't help but stare at the dessert from behind the counter. As the two explained about the kiji and their ranks, Fai caught sight of the staring Nazaiya and went near her with a smile, staring at her intently. Nazaiya looked up at him, confusion written all over her face.

"Why are you staring?" she frowned.  
"Ah, I just thought of how lucky this café is to have such an adorable waitress as you~" he cooed.  
"I thought you said Sakura is adorable?" she scoffed playfully.  
"Hm? Were you jealous I complimented her first?"  
"What?" she turned away, a taint of pink on her cheeks."That's absurd."

A plate of chocolate shortcake was then pushed on the counter, right in front of her. She stared at the dessert, before looking up at the wizard again. His smile was still the same as usual, and yet, this time is made her heart skipped a beat.

"I've noticed," Fai spoke, "that you became quiet since eating the custard this morning. Do you like it?"  
She nodded, looking down on the plate. "I've never tasted anything so sweet… It made me wonder when I can eat it again."

Such a silly reasoning, she thought. The reason why she was quiet was because she had been glancing at Fai throughout the day, admiring how he looked perfect being a waiter. But no, Nazaiya couldn't say that.

"Fai-san..." she mumbled, and Fai was surprised to hear her said his name again. "About what I said before we left for this world…"

Nazaiya felt a hand patting her head gently, before pulling away. _Such warmth_, she thought. She missed it. That cold hand that gave her warmth…

Nazaiya looked up, eyes meeting with the blue eyes that hide a thousand and one secrets. The wizard didn't say a thing, but she felt like he said he understood. She doesn't know, but it was almost like their hearts could almost connect. But suddenly, she felt lonely. A little thought came creeping in, making her wonder; will she not be able to help them? To help him? If so, will she be alone?

She wasn't able to think more when their two customers, or guests, greeted her.

"Is this your girlfriend, Big Kitty-san?" the girl asked innocently, and Nazaiya stared at her with a surprised face.  
Fai shrugged with a smile. "Who knows?"  
"Ah, nice to meet you, 'Little Bunny'-san!" she greeted, and Nazaiya shook her hand with a smile. A forced one, because she was surprised of her name. But she knew the culprit behind that name, and she gave a playful glare to the mage.

After their guests left, Nazaiya stood in front of Fai and looked up at him, and Fai stared down at her questionably.

"A nice name for me, 'Big Kitty'." She let out a dangerous smile.

The wizard grinned cheekily, before backing away because of the scary aura by the said girl.

* * *

It was already night time of the next day, and Fai and Kurogane had to go somewhere. Nazaiya was mad, being told to stay at the café and not go with the two.

"Why can't I follow you two? I'm not under-aged." the girl frowned.  
"What are you, a kid?" Kurogane raised an eyebrow.

Throwing a tantrum makes her look like a real kid, honestly.

"But Nazaiya-chan, Syaoran and Sakura need guidance from an adult so you have to stay at the café. Since you're not under-aged, you have to stay~" Fai said, tried calming her down.  
"Adult? Right." Kurogane smirked.  
"Hey!" she frowned. "I can't just stay here. I wanna go out too."  
"No means no, because Big Doggie Daddy says so!" Fai put his forefinger in the air, as if disciplining a child.

With that, Kurogane chased the blond out of the café, and on to the streets. Nazaiya shook her head in disbelief, before turning her attention towards the other two.

Kurogane then stopped chasing Fai, as he began to walk with a grumpy face on. Or rather, he was stumping his feet as he walk. Being the playful guy he is, Fai teased the ninja all the way making Kurogane boil with anger all through their walk.

Just as Kurogane was threatening Fai to stop, the wizard then threw some darts and they hit a certain kiji right behind of Kurogane.

"Be more careful, Kuro-pii!" Fai sang.  
"Whose fault is it?!" he roared, and Fai ran away again.

Just then, he stopped as a few kijis surrounded them. Smirking, Kurogane prepared his sword for attack, as Fai skillfully aimed his darts at the monsters. The two then were surrounded by more kijis, and the two were more than ready to fight.

But all Fai did mostly was dodging, and he didn't really attack. When Kurogane asked, he said that he should leave things to the professional one. And all the while, he still kept teasing the angry ninja.

"We should attack!" Kurogane growled, his sword cutting through the monsters.  
"But we don't have enough weapons!" Fai shrugged, standing on a light-pole.

All of a sudden, a huge kiji slashed his sharp claws across the air to Fai, and in attempt to dodge, he was pushed to the wall by the force of the kiji and crashed into the wall, laying limp on his own.

Kurogane then slashed the kiji away, releasing his sword technique shortly afterwards. A fire swirled around him, before burning all the monsters around him. His fragile sword broke, and he frowned.

"This sword couldn't hold my special technique, eh?" Kurogane said as he looked at it.  
"That's our Kuro-sama!" Fai cheered, despite feeling painful.  
Kurogane came near the wizard. "Is your leg alright?"  
"Looks like I didn't die." Fai looked up, smiling.  
"It's not that you didn't die," Kurogane took his scabbard and held it up. "It's that you won't die."

He pushed the scabbard at Fai's leg, looking down as the blond twitched in pain.

"The ones I hate the most are those who give up their lives before all hopes are gone." Kurogane said firmly, putting the scabbard away.  
Fai smiled as he looked down, "Which means I'm the person that you hate the most."  
"You're like this, and yet you want to protect her. You think this is enough?" at the ninja's remark, Fai went quiet.

Silence passed by. Moments later, a female bartender called out to them, and before long, they were inside the bar named Clover.

After about an hour, the two then left the bar with Fai being carried along by Kurogane. It was getting darker that night, as a howl of wolf passed by the silence.

"Hey," Kurogane spoke, "just now in the bar, you said you were waiting for someone to stay by your side."  
"Hm?" Fai perked his ears up, waiting for the ninja to finish his sentence.  
"Isn't that girl enough? You could just go with her and whatever."  
Fai laughed. "Such attitude of assumptions is not good, Kuro-puu!"  
"I'm seriously gonna drop you here." he grumbled, and Fai laughed again.

The two then were silent again, before an unexpected statement came from the wizard's mouth.

"Nazaiya-chan… Is dying."

Kurogane stopped walking, shock written all over his face for a brief moment. After a few seconds, he continued his steps.

"What are you saying?" he frowned.  
Fai's eyes were clouded with unreadable expression. "The reason I told her not to use her powers is that the more she uses it, the more it'll eat her heart. When her heart, that artificial heart inside her reaches its full potential, it'll turn black. Then… she won't be able to breathe anymore."

Kurogane was quiet, as if thinking.

"Does she know about it?" the ninja asked.  
"Probably not. All these darkness are seeping through and hurting her and yet she still uses her powers."  
"What would happen if she doesn't use her powers at all? What would happen if she uses it all?"  
A pause. "I don't know." Fai muttered under his breath, as the two finally reached back to their café.

After his leg was treated by Syaoran, Fai thanked him happily before teasing Kurogane. Suddenly he realized that they were missing someone.

"Where's Nazaiya-chan?" Fai asked, looking at Sakura.  
Sakura looked down, worry etched on her face. "She went into her room just as the customers came."  
Mokona then hopped on Fai's shoulder. "Nazaiya looked shocked when she heard Ryu-Oh's name. Then she excused herself."

Fai glanced at Kurogane, and the ninja looked away as if he doesn't care.

Back in her room, Nazaiya was sitting silently on her bed, looking out of the window. The moon beamed down through the glass, the dark sky being its company. Nazaiya's mind was clouded, her eyes narrowed.

"Ryu-oh…" she muttered. "Ryoji… Ryu-oh… Ryu…"

She looked down at her hands.

"Ryuu…" she whispered.

She remembered it all too well; the warmth of the young man. His smile, his soft whispers, his happy eyes. The way he taught her, showed her happiness, being his light. It's him. The one who she's been searching for. She was able to hide him well at the back of her mind, at the bottom of her heart. And yet, just as the mention of his name, her heart felt like it's shattering. She missed him. Ryuu.

She clenched her fists into tight grips, as if she was holding something.

"Where are you, Ryuu…?" she whispered.

Little did she know, that a particular mage was by her door, listening to her whispers. His back was to her door, as he folded his arms with a grim face.

"A guy named… Ryuu?" he huffed.

**To be continued…**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17.**

Nazaiya heard the commotion outside, right when she was back on her senses. The moon beamed down on her through the window, almost telling her that she wasn't lonely at that time. With a sigh, she regained her composure and stepped out of her room calmly. She decided to put the thoughts of Ryuu behind her for now.

As she stepped downstairs, she saw everyone was lying around with a smile on their faces, each person mumbling something that she couldn't understand. She thought she heard Sakura and Fai let out some sounds that imitated a cat, and she frowned. What was that, she wondered. She then saw Kurogane sitting alone as he looked at his sword in the corner, so she decided to sit beside him.

"Why is everyone sleeping while mumbling?" that was the first thing that Nazaiya ask, and it almost made Kurogane jolt in surprise. No hi or anything, just a straight question.  
"They all got drunk." Kurogane replied with a frown, but not directly to her.  
"Even the kids?" she raised an eyebrow. "Even Fai? Really?"  
"You don't wanna try yourself and see?" he said sarcastically, in which she returns with a small laugh.  
"No, thanks. So, did you get any new information?"  
Kurogane looked at her for a while, "Hey, do you know about your—"

As if on cue, Fai suddenly let out a loud 'meow!', acting as a cat and startled Nazaiya. She turned to look, and Fai flashed her a cheeky grin. He was meowing so loud, and the others suddenly joined, that Kurogane and Nazaiya can't continue talking anymore. The ninja knew that the mage was not going to let him ask anything to the girl, and so, he shouted; "Go to bed, all of you!"

* * *

Several days had passed. Since then, Syaoran had been training with Kurogane on how to use a sword. For most of it, he was left alone to train by himself. During that time, Syaoran had also encountered with someone he claimed he had met before back in his world, and his name was Seishirou. Kurogane and Syaoran had also tried their best to gain as much information as they can about the new kijis and their leader, while Sakura and Fai were busy at the café.

They were all so hardworking, and since she couldn't help much, Nazaiya felt so useless. She offered to help, but most of the time they told her that she can just stay put. Well, she couldn't even help in the kitchen since she's not good at helping them preparing the sweet food that are always being served. But still, she wanted to help.

That day, it was strangely quiet. Syaoran and Kurogane were out, searching for more information. Fai and Sakura were busy in the kitchen with Mokona alongside them, leaving Nazaiya to wipe the tables alone. She sighed, thinking how useless she had been so far. She knew that they're her companions, and yet, she felt so alone. Somehow that day, she felt uneasy.

A sudden call of her name made her snap back into reality. It was Fai, calling her from the kitchen. She quickly put away the wiping cloth she was holding and went straight to the back.

As she stepped into the kitchen, she gasped in surprise seeing Sakura laying down on the kitchen floor, and looks like Fai had caught her just in time as she was now in his arms.

"What happened?" Nazaiya asked, crouching down to take a closer look on the girl's condition.  
"She's just asleep, probably because she tried staying awake all day." Fai told her with a smile.  
"Thank goodness. Do you need help picking her up? I'm sure your right foot still hurts." she tilted her head. "Are you really okay?"  
Fai shook his head. "Ah, I'm fine. Can you go to the shop nearby for a bit? We really need some more sugar, and I still have things to do."

He let out his usual, cheery smile at her, and she couldn't help but blush and smiled back at him.

Nazaiya slowly stood up and nodded. She was happy that Fai trusted her, even just by doing a small errand. "I'll be right back!" she said cheerfully, leaving the kitchen quickly before the blond had anything else to say.

Fai chuckled to himself and looked at Mokona. "Nazaiya-chan really is an adorable one, isn't she?"  
"Uh-hum!" Mokona nodded, before hopping on to Fai's shoulder. "But still, she looked rather lonely. You too, Fai. Didn't you say back in the previous world, that everyone should be happy? Fai too, should be happy."  
"But I'm always happy!" he grinned.  
"But Fai is always thinking of something else when smiling." it pouted.

It was as if Fai was caught off guard. For a moment, he was quiet.

He picked Mokona up in his hands and smiled, "Mokona, you're quite sharp!"  
"This is one of Mokona's 108 secret techniques!" Mokona exclaimed happily. "Kurogane, Syaoran and even Nazaiya, they are all lonely. But you know, being together in this journey would feel less lonely. Being with each other makes us all less lonely. Mokona thinks so!"  
With a soft sigh, Fai let out a painful smile. "That would be nice…"

Fai then stood up as she carried Sakura in his arms, gently laying her on the couch and putting on a blanket over her. He looked up at the clock at the wall, and wondered why Nazaiya was taking time with just buying some sugar. Just then, the bell on the door softly chimed as someone made his way into the café.

"Welcome!" with a smile, Fai greeted happily. But just as he realized the person's right eye, he instinctively told Mokona to stay beside Sakura.

"Might you be," Fai hesitated, "Seishirou-san?". His smile was cautious.

At the market, Nazaiya had two packets of sugar ready in the basket she was hooking on her arm. She just decided to take a stroll for a bit to buy some fruits. She stopped by a fruit vendor when she saw fruits that looked like apples, as she remembered it.

"I hope they like this. Fai, especially." Nazaiya whispered slowly to herself, a smile forming on her lips.

After paying, she turned around and started heading back to the café. She was happily walking, almost skipping, when she looked up at the café some hundred meters away from her. It was too quiet, strangely. She felt so uneasy, as she quickened her steps to the café.

As she pushed the entrance door of the café, the back of a tall, unknown man in black came into her view, along with two tall kijis side by side. Nazaiya stopped in her tracks, shocked to see the man. Her eyes slowly scanned the room. As she realized the absence of Fai, her heart beat quickened.

"Where is Fai? And who are you?" Nazaiya asked, her voice cut through the silence.

The man simply turned to look at her, and his lips formed a faint smile. The right eye which was white was not surprising to her. She can sense how powerful the man in front of her is.

"Another magic wielder, I see." he spoke.

Nazaiya glared at the man, before narrowing her eyes.

"You must be Seishirou. Where is Fai?" this time, she asked with a strain in her voice.

"That _wizard_?" he smiled again. "He is _dead_."

For a second, Nazaiya thought her heart has stopped beating. The basket on her arm dropped to the floor as her hands lay limp on her sides, the contents of it sprawled on the floor. It was a word she never wanted to hear. 'Dead'. Her fingers were trembling, and her heart was shaken with so much emotion, she felt like she couldn't breathe. Terror was clearly seen on her face, and she clenched her fists tightly, gritting her teeth.

"You…" she breathed out in a harsh murmur. "…killed him?"

There was no reply. Seishirou's smile was not fazed at all, and he wasn't even scared. As his eyes met with hers, he knew that her anger had took control of her body.

It was a silent moment, before Nazaiya looked up and smirked. A wicked smirk, that somehow made Seishirou surprised for a moment, before going back to his smile. He sensed a different aura from her, but it was nothing scary to him…. or so he thought.

Nazaiya raised her right hand in the air and pointed over to one kiji beside Seishirou. She looked deeply into the eyes of the kiji, before grinning with craze.

"Bow down to me." She said boldly, and the kiji obliged. The huge kiji kneeled before them and lowered its head on her, showing her respect. Seishirou felt challenged, but his smile didn't waver.

With a snap of her fingers, the kiji turned from her and looked over at Seishirou. It was ready to attack, and to kill. Just as it roared and brought his claws down to the man, he jumped away and the kiji was stopped by the kiji who was with Seishirou. They roared at each other, beginning to fight among themselves as Seishirou looked down to Nazaiya from where he was standing.

"The more you use your magic to summon the evil, the more your life span shortened. And you are okay with that, as long as you seek revenge for the dead wizard?" his voice was sharp.

It was news for her. She had never knew that. She knows that it will affect her, but a shortened life span?

"You're lying!" she shouted, surprising herself. "I don't understand what you're talking about!"  
"The wizard never told you?" He raised an eyebrow, knowing well that he got her now.  
"...Fai knows about it?" Nazaiya was beginning to lose focus.  
"He never told you about it, then."

There it was. That tinge of anger in her heart, sparking again like it did back in the land of Koryo. She was gonna lose control again. Her head buzzed, seeing that her kiji was being hit pretty badly. She glared at Seishirou, huffing as she find herself fading away from her own thoughts.

"Kill him!" she tried to shout, but it came out almost as a loud whimper.

But the kiji she controlled was losing the fight, and Seishirou was looking at her as if she's merely an opponent. Like she was not _even_ someone worth to fight with.

"Your powers aren't even the level of the wizard himself, and yet you used it. He doesn't." He smirked.  
"Shut up!" she retorted back, gritting her teeth in madness.

Seishirou sighed as if he was handling a child. "Finish her."

At the sound of the order, both of the kiji began to step towards her. Her eyes were wide in shock, and she was trembling with fear. She was no longer in control. Slowly, she stepped back, and was driven into a corner.

Before she could take another breath, sharp claws swayed down upon her stomach and scratched her greatly, making her writhe in pain. She fell on her knees to the floor, and as blood was dripping from her stomach, Nazaiya felt herself losing consciousness. With a pierce of another sharp claw directly to her stomach, her breath was knocked out of her lungs and with a cough of horrible, red blood, she fell on the floor with a thud, laying limp on her front. Darkness crept into her sight, and she felt herself drowning in pain and a sudden loneliness. Before long, she closed her eyes and her breath faded away.

**To be continued…**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N**: Hey there, people. Long A/N at the bottom, but just a heads-up that I've changed some things from the previous chapters to portray Nazaiya's character better. You can read from the start again if you want, but the storyline has not changed (at least, I don't think so,) so you don't have to worry! You might be surprised of character developments, though. Happy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 18.**

Nazaiya felt heavy – her body was carried by soft waves of liquid, her whole body soaked in the depths of water and her thoughts were wavering here and there. She felt her body heavy, but her mind and heart were completely light and empty. Her eyes were shut tight, as she felt herself drowning and drowning, deeper towards the endless pit of darkness of the ocean. She couldn't breathe, but she had no strength to struggle and break-free.

A moment later, flashes of smiles and memories of kindness began to paint the corners of her mind. Her limp body that was drowning just a moment ago, began to move on its own. Her fingers twitched, trying to reach out for something. There were smiles of people she knows – the people she's traveling with. And then it crossed her mind; a smile from _him_. That blond wizard with blue eyes. The charming smile he wears and his carefree nature, alongside his kindness. It made her feel light, and a smile formed on her lips. Before she knew it, her body was carried forward, towards the surface of the ocean. She felt free and happy. It was as if, a pair of gentle, warm hands were reaching out for her, pulling her out of the cold ocean, towards the open air of the sky.

And Nazaiya's eyes fluttered open. She breathed in and out of the air that occupied her lungs, calming her senses. So it was a dream, after all. The one who reached out for her in that dream… was Fai.

Then her body jolted, fully awake and sitting up. She looked around the unfamiliar surrounding, trying to figure out where, when or how she got here. Her head pounded for a second as a rush of memories flashed before her eyes, and she blinked a few times before coming back into reality. As she noticed it, she was on a bed, and her outfit has changed from the previous world's.

"_Is this another world? If yes, then that means–__"_

Without delay, Nazaiya pushed her blanket away and jumped out of the bed, almost stumbling in the process. She knew she was hasty, but she _needs_ to find him. Was he alright? Is he even alive? God, please, she wants to see him one more time.

After regaining her balance, she went out of the room and looked left and right, when she heard voices coming from somewhere. She followed the voices through the living room, and her breath hitched when she saw him. There he was, standing tall and lean, talking to Syaoran with a smile on his face. That smile. She thought she'll never see it ever again. A relieved smile etched upon her lips, she felt like she could cry.

The man looked up at her upon realization and waved, seeming happy that she was awake. Syaoran looked at her as well, but was surprised with her next set of actions. With wobbly feet, she stepped forward and made her way to the man, before wrapping her arms around him and burying his face to his clothed chest. It was very bold of her, and it made Syaoran blush at the sight in front of him.

Fai was more surprised than anyone in the room as his eyes widened in shock, but he smiled anyways right after, gently patting the girl on the head. His other hand wrapped around the girl's shoulders, welcoming her embrace. He then winked at Syaoran for a bit, and the boy took the sign and nodded, a slight pink still staining his cheeks. The younger boy then turned around and made his way to the door, stepping outside to give the two some space.

"What happened, Nazaiya-chan? Did you have a nightmare?" his worried voice resounded through the living room, soothing her in many ways possible. She missed that voice, so much that she could cry for real this time. It felt like she has been sleeping for so long.

Nazaiya slowly let go of his warmth and held both of his wrists with her shaky fingers, and stared up at the blond. He was taken aback, as he saw the beginnings of tears in her eyes. What could possibly be the problem, he wondered. He frowned a bit, and slowly released his right hand from her grip to caress her cheek.

"What's wrong? Tell me," he spoke, "Nazaiya-chan."

She gulped, before casting her eyes down and started speaking in a low voice.

"Fai-san... you're alive." her voice came out a little louder than a whisper.  
"Hm? Of course I am."  
"But t-that Seishirou guy…" she trailed off.  
"Ah, that person." he smiled, tilting her face gently upwards with his thumb and forefinger. "He's long gone. And we're in another country. You've been asleep for a while now, Nazaiya-chan. About two dimensions past, but I'm glad you're awake now."

His gentle smile warms her heart, and she let out another smile in reply to his. Then, a sudden thought came to her. It was of what Seishirou had said the other day. As his eyes bore into hers, she felt the need to ask him the question.

"Fai-san," she spoke, "can I ask you to tell me everything about… me? I heard that my life will shorten, the more I use my powers. Is that true?"

A wave of shock flashed through Fai's expression, but he went to his usual self right after.

"Who told you that, Nazaiya-chan?" he asked.

Outside, Syaoran has been standing in idle for a while, when he saw Sakura, Kurogane and Mokona arrived. They're finally home at last. As everyone was approaching the door, they heard the commotion that came from the inside.

"Why won't you tell me anything?! This is _my_ life we're talking about!" Nazaiya's voice rang through the living room.  
"But Nazaiya-chan…" Fai tried to reason with her.  
"No! I want to know. I _need_ to know," her voice was shaking, "Please. If you don't, I might overuse my powers and I'll-"  
"So be it, Nazaiya-chan."

Fai's curt, cold voice snapped her into silence, and she looked up at the blond, her eyes widened with shock, her mouth agape with nothing to say.

"We are strangers to begin with," he continued, "so whatever happens to you... It doesn't concern me."

His lips were set in a thin line, his eyes looking down at her as if she was a speck of dust that make its way into his life; uninvited and lost. And with that look in his eyes, Nazaiya felt her heart was being tore into pieces. She was just beginning to trust him, just beginning to make friends with him so that they could help each other in the future, just beginning to think of him as something _more_. She was sure her dream just now had meant _something_, but everything was torn up now. In the end, did she meant nothing to him, after all?

"Do you really think... that I should just die?" her strained voice filled the silence between them, a single tear made its way on her cheek.

From the outside, hearing no response, they all knew that Fai was not going to answer her. The front door then burst open, and Nazaiya came out with a pained expression plastered on her face. Tears were finally wetting down her cheeks, signifying the ache of her heart. She stomped out of the house and didn't even glance at the others, as Fai made no move to chase after her.

The kids weren't sure what to make of the situation, and they were worried where Nazaiya would go. After seeing from afar that Nazaiya was just outside, sitting by a bench and looking out at the sky, they decided to step in. Fai who was sitting on the couch, tried his hardest to smile at them when they arrived at the living room. When his eyes met Kurogane's, though, his felt shiver down his spine when he was sent a very cold glare, as if he just did a huge sin that would affect the rest of the team.

* * *

The gentle, cold breeze that waved through her hair made her shiver that evening, but Nazaiya still didn't budge from the bench she was sitting from since earlier. She hugged her knees close, as if cradling herself in an attempt to cheer herself up. She didn't want to go in to where the blond was, which is in the house, but she also didn't want to stay out for too long for fear of the cold.

An exhausted sigh escaped her lips for the umpteenth time as she sat straight up and stretched a bit. Her tears had dried up, and the fatigue of thinking too much has began to take a toll on her. She thought about a lot of things for the whole day. About herself, about the people she's involved in, about what she's really searching for, and she also started reminiscing of the past.

She couldn't remember everything as her memories were a bit hazy, and sometimes she caught herself thinking of the dark, negative feelings of wanting to just... _Kill_. She knew something was off - and perhaps, maybe, she might even just lose control. But no - she wanted to hold on. She needed to hold on, because Ryuu must be found. And she clenched her fists tightly with the new resolution. Somehow, she thought that she almost forgot why she's finding him to begin with.

At first, Nazaiya has thought that she needed Ryuu's warmth. That was why she needed him. She wanted to feel needed, and needed to feel wanted. But this time, it was as if she was chasing a dim light at the end of a dark, hollow pathway. And the warmth and light she needed now... Was on someone else. On some blond guy that has a charming smile and a lovable personality. And she eagerly, _eagerly_ wanted to do something in return. She wanted him to smile at her, and her _only_. She wanted him to be happy, _genuinely_ happy, without those sorrow behind his deep, pretty blue eyes. But in the end... She wasn't needed by any of them. She wasn't needed by anyone.

She let out a faint, pathetic laugh at herself. As she looked down, and as the silent night creeped up upon her thoughts, another tear made its way on her cheek. "I'm... alone." Nazaiya whispered under her breath, gulping down her sorrow.

Inside, standing by a window and looking out at her with a worried expression, was the blond that she thought had hated her.

The kids were fast asleep, and Fai was leaning against the wall as he looked through the window, devastation etched on his face. It was uncharacteristic of him. Usually he was so in control of both his emotions and actions, but this time, it has all gone haywire. And as much as he wanted to change it, he thought of himself as a coward. A pathetic coward, that does not deserve to love and be loved.

His thoughts went back to the events that had happened earlier that day. Fai gulped the lump in his throat, feeling like he had lost a few beats of his own heart. He felt like his heart was being prickled by thorns, hearing her voice shaking with fear and her eyes brimming with tears. Even his mind was not in the right state. All he wanted was to go to her, tell her that everything is fine, but he couldn't; their fate could not be intertwined. That was what he was told before. But still...

"The only way to show you _actually _care is to be there for the person, not pushing the person away when she needs you the most."

A rough voice broke through Fai's train of thoughts, and he turned away to greet the ninja with a happy smile. With a huff, Kurogane sat down on the couch with a beer on one of his hands, and a scarf in the other. He threw the scarf to the blond, and Fai caught it skillfully in his hands. He sent the other guy a puzzled look, tilting his head in confusion.

Kurogane took a sip of his beer, before looking into the distance. "If you don't act now, you'll never have the chance to. You'll never know what would happen, and when you would suddenly be sent to another dimension, away from those you wanted to be close with..."

His voice trailed off, but Fai had a hint of what he was talking about. Of course, Kurogane meeting Tomoyo here was a surprise, but to had such an effect on him, well, even Fai could be very surprised.

"Kuro-puu... I don't even know what I'm doing anymore," he laughed, but his soul wasn't in it. "I knew that she was getting too involved with me, too deep into this kind of relationship we have. It's not like we're dating or anything, too. I just want to stop that before she gets in any danger. This is all for the sake of-"

"Excuses." Kurogane cut in, his brows furrowed with annoyance. "You don't care if you die, but you do care if something were to happen to her. Does telling her to die today wasn't enough of a trigger for her? She could be throwing her life away any second now, for all you know."

Fai felt a pang in his chest. His eyes widened with realization. What was he doing? He knew that his words earlier were harsh and cold, but he wanted her to at least hate him, and stay away from him. But her to actually die? No, that was far from what he wanted. If anything, he wanted her to be safe. He wanted to always talk with her. He wanted to see her right in front of his eyes. He wanted to see _her smile_. And there weren't even many chances for him to talk to her and joke with her. But the thought of not having her around... made his chest hurt.

Fai clenched the scarf in his hands and let out a smile at Kurogane. "Thank you, Kuro-rin!" he exclaimed, before rushing his steps and stepped out of the house, eager to go and talk to her. He knew it - he was in too deep in this before he knew it. But she doesn't have to know that. He just wants to see her smile, and that's all that matters to him.

Hearing the footsteps approaching her, Nazaiya slowly wiped away all her tears and calmed herself down. She needed the time alone, but having a company at this time might be nice too. Maybe Sakura came here to cheer her up with her adorable way of cheering Syaoran up? Or maybe it's Kurogane who, as gruff as he is, might want to start caring for a companion like her?

As she looked up towards the person who came up to her, her eyes widened in surprise. It was the last person she wanted to see at that time - and yet, she felt a tinge of happiness pull upon the strings of her heart.

"There you are..." Fai breathed out, as if he was really relieved. Without being invited, he took his seat on the bench next to her, keeping quite a distance as she moved a bit. She couldn't bring herself to look at him for the sadness, anger and disappointment she felt hasn't subsided completely yet. She would never knew when it will totally subside, actually. But hearing Fai calling out her name, she slowly looked up and faced him, the moonlight shining upon her face.

Upon seeing her face clearly, Fai felt another pang through his chest. Her eyes were red and swollen, her cheeks puffy with all the dried up tears, and her lower lip was chapped - she must have been so frustrated and has accidentally bit it too hard. It aches his heart to think that he was the reason for all of this. All he wanted was to reach out to her, but he couldn't. He was still a pathetic coward, he thought, but he pushed away those thoughts before inching closer and closer to her. She looked scared but wasn't completely rejecting him, so he brought the scarf around her shoulders, resting them softly against her.

Nazaiya flinched at the contact, but she didn't make a move to distance herself away. She wanted him to say something, _something_, so that she won't feel so confused and frustrated and sad and -

"I'm sorry."

The moment she heard those words came out of his mouth, she felt herself being wrapped firmly in his embrace, and she couldn't breathe. The once cold hands that she held has now turned warm - warmer than any other warmth she has experienced. She could feel his clothed body against hers, his arms caging her with a gentle force, and his breath tickling her neck as he slowly rested his chin on her shoulder. She felt like her mind has stopped processing and she couldn't even respond to what was happening.

"I'm sorry for saying all of that. I'm so sorry, Nazaiya-chan."

The way his voice shook with fear sent a tingling sensation to her heart, as if she was fragile and he didn't want to break her, and he meant every word.

"I just wanted you to stay away from me..." he whispered, "but my words were harsher than I thought. I wouldn't want you to die. We want you to stay... _I_ want you to stay."

He held her tighter, and she couldn't help but smell his warm, comforting scent. His words and his voice were soothing, and she felt like she was being cradled in his strong arms.

"I'm pathetic, Nazaiya-chan. I didn't want you to get involved with someone like me. And yet I..."  
"I'm pathetic too, Fai. Pathetic, and alone."

Hearing her words, Fai slowly pulled away, and she felt like she finally could breathe. One of his hands went to take her hand in his, and the other went to cradle her cheek, his eyes looking deep into hers.

"What are you saying...?" he breathed out.  
She let out a smile. "I'm pathetic for not knowing anything about myself, wanting to search for people who doesn't need me, and being in the way for nice people like you. I don't deserve all of this kindness you're giving me."  
"No, Nazaiya-chan. That's not true." The end of his lips stretched a bit, and his smile was back. "Your efforts at protecting the kids, for wanting to fight alongside us and to find the feather... You deserve all the good things. You're not alone, surely you're not."

Seeing that smile, that _charming_ smile, made her heart skip a beat. And she couldn't possibly win this time. Not in this exchange of conversation, surely.

"I guess..." she tried to smile back, "If I'm not alone, that means you are not, too, Fai. You also deserve the good things and love you gave out to people. If whenever you feel lonely..."

When Nazaiya began to trail off and looked down, Fai gently lifted her face up with the pad of his thumb. He felt the need to know the rest of her words, and he looked into her eyes again with a meaningful gaze.

"Yes...?" he urged.

A blush crept upon her face as she breathed it out, "If whenever you feel lonely, I want you to know that I'll be here for you, to listen to whatever sadness you've kept inside. And all through this journey, I had always wanted to hear you out. I wanted to be there for you, who had always be there for everyone. Even now, all I wanted was to see your smile. I... don't want you to give up on living."

And without shifting her gaze away, she continued. "Fai, I want to be by your side."

Just as the words were out of her mouth, she felt like she was being pulled closer to him again. She didn't know what was happening so she shut her eyes tight in fear of what's coming, but instead, she felt the soft press of lips on her forehead for a few moments, before it was being pulled away. She felt a bit loss because it was too quick of a forehead kiss, but then regained her composure to look up at him again.

"Be careful of what you're saying, Nazaiya-chan." He let out a soft chuckle. "One of these days, I might really fall hard for you."

She felt her face heat up at his blunt statement, before she inched away a bit and shifted her gaze away from his. She didn't miss the twinkle of tease in his eyes. Her heart thumped loudly against her chest. He was making her very confused. Did she say the wrong thing? Did she say the right thing? What was he saying? What did she actually say earlier that made him react like that?

Nazaiya then felt her hand was suddenly held tightly by him, and she looked up with a smile, matching his charming one. The two of them then began to stand up and slowly made their way inside, hand in hand.

"Well then, Nazaiya-chan. From now on, we should start getting to know each other, right?" he asked, a playful smile on his lips. He couldn't describe it - the happy feeling inside of him was overflowing, he felt like he could die happy. He knew that she couldn't possibly understand what was happening right now, but her enthusiastic nod was enough to make him feel secure. At least, he knows that he has a chance to both make her fall in love with him, and for him to fall in love deeply with her.

Nazaiya gripped Fai's hand tightly, happy with how things worked out for now. She didn't know her true feelings, even at this point, she knew that everything was still too fast for her. Having the time to get to know him more would surely open up her heart towards him even more. At least, she knew that he treasured her greatly and he _wanted_ her to stay. He _needed _her, perhaps, and she knew that much. The scarf wrapped around her couldn't compare to how warm he was to her at that time.

He was harsh and cold sometimes, he was all fluffy and smiley most of the time, but in all of that side of him, she couldn't exactly find it in her to hate him. And she knew she was falling for him, but then again, everything was escalating fairly quickly right in front of her eyes. Things are happening, but her mind was hazy with everything that had happened today. And apparently, somehow, she had put the thought of her running out of time to live at the back of her mind. Little did she know, that it was the biggest mistake the both have made.

**To be continued...**

* * *

**A/N: **Hi again, everyone! Long time no see, hehe. I've been feeling hella guilty for not updating this, and those guilt went on for a year and more. I still got notifications of people favouriting/following this story until now and wow, that made me want to really update this by tonight. And, here you go!

I know this whole chapter kinda escalated quickly, but trust me, between making it angstier or fluffier, you would want me to choose the latter. Because if I make it angsty... haha. This was supposed to be _even_ fluffier, but I stopped myself. Had to save the fun for later, aye? ;) But I've drafted out this whole fanfic on to paper before, and trust me, I _will_ finish this. So please bear with me! ;;;;

Also, please keep in mind that I will start arching off this whole fanfic into my own storyline from now on, as to not follow the original storyline so much (because I don't want to appear like I'm so lost in adventure, I forgot the romance. That's what happened in the previous chapters, and that's where I think I went hella wrong) and I think I was immature in my writing back then. Hopefully this chapter makes up for all the time lost! (No kidding, it's 4k+ words omg.)

Ahh I still haven't read Tsubasa World Chronicles until the end, but I told myself to only read it once I finish a lot of chapters ;;; The new art style is a bit different and I feel a bit odd, but I guess it's good all the same? Hehe.

Whoops. This was hella long. Please know that I'll still update this even if it's late, and I miss yall haha. Thank you so much, new and old readers, you guys are the best! Please stay tuned for the next chapter, and have a nice day~ Byeom. :D


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